Dragon Quest V: The Legend of Madason
by GameFreakimage
Summary: In a single kingdom, a boy is born. Soon afterwards, his mother is abducted. From his father, a single mission. From that mission, he will come into contact with many others that will bring light to his life. From boy, to man, to husband, to father... Madason will experience it all. If only to find the one person he has never known.
1. Chapter 1: Birth of a Hero

**Author's Notes: **Some of you may notice the lack of updates for Rekka No Ken. Well, that's because my old computer DIED on me and most likely took all my files with it. Including Chapter 20. So, while I'm stewing in my depression (sarcasm) I figured I'd use that to bring you guys a story from a series even nearer and dearer to my heart than Rekka No Ken. That being, Dragon Quest, specifically, the fifth one! This game is without a doubt a gem among gems. Both for its story and for it mechanic of recruiting monsters onto you team to fight alongside you (This was before Pokemon and the like). This series is far too underrated, especially when compared to *shudders* Final Fantasy. Not knocking FF, but they've been pushed far too much into the spotlight for the West. Enough with me ranting, let's get down to the juicy details!

1: This will be a retelling, but with far more of my own ideas put into the story. I don't plan on making this as tried and true to the plot of the original game, but it should at the very least lead to the same ending.

2: I will be making polls for this game a certain intervals where you all can influence the story (One or two being major changes, which I will tell you in advance).

3: In game side-quests and items may be worked or at least written into the story. So there may be a little lamp shading of the kleptomaniac protagonist tope more often than not.

4: This story may take the spotlight as I put Rekka No Ken on hiatus until I can recover my work. So to those who love Rekka No Ken... the only material you might see for that series for a while will be the Side Stories (which I have been neglecting, I admit).

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Chapter 1: Birth of a Hero

**Year 750: Age of the Dragon and Goddess**

Far away in the Southeastern continent, in the kingdom of Gotha; a castle town unlike any other, with the citizens living within the large walls of the castle, at the bequest of their king in order to better protect them. The castle itself is large, even by royal standards, with new perimeters and rooms that were finished not even ten years ago to accommodate the citizenry. Within the large walls, is the castle itself. There are four towers, each at a different corner that serve as outposts and watch towers for the soldiers stationed within them. For those positions, one can see for several miles thanks to the flat plains and well kept roads leading to the castle from the Gotha Path. Attached to those towers is the main body of the castle; the castle commons, where the shops and homes of the citizens takes up almost all of the area. The inn, item, weapons, and armor shop take the ground floor of both of the southern towers and the first two rooms within the castle. Aside from those, all other rooms and houses within belong to ordinary citizens. Then, at the very end of the commons, atop a flight of stairs, is the Altar of the Goddess for mass and confessions. Then, at the very end of even the commons, is the original castle. It is easy to identify because of its proud, navy blue bricks that decorate its roof and its large insignia, emblazed on a large, red cloth with a mighty bird of prey stitched in gold, its wings extended as if it were about to take off in flight.

But Gotha itself is not important, at least, not yet. What is important however, is what is going on inside closed doors to only but a select few. Today, of all days, is an important one. Today is the day, that king Pankraz and his wife, Queen Madalena, of the Loftinians, a people whom once had the power to open and close the gates of the Demon Realm, await the birth of their first child. It is there, in the throne room, where this tale unfolds…

The sounds of an old grandfather clock tick in the background of a majestic throne room as a man worriedly paces back and forth as four other men watch him from afar. The man is dressed in a regal brown cloak, with white cuffs and thick leather boots, with a heavy deep red cape tied around his shoulders. His attire is incredibly high-end and shows signs of incredible nobility, but his appearance appears to be the exact opposite of someone of noble birth. His hair, a dark brown, easily mistakable for black, is frizzy and spikey, is barely contained in a ponytail. His face, while carrying a gentle smile at times, is chiseled and sharp, his eyes are a deep brown, and filled with confidence befitting one who had bested many a monster and man alike. However, this was one of the few times where those eyes didn't contain the usual confidence they held.

"Please, your majesty," one of the men standing in front of the door of the throne room begs, his appearance strongly similar to Pankraz, though much less rugged, "Take a seat. It won't do you any good to worry so."

Pankraz stopped in his tracks as he turned to face the man who had addressed him, "You're right," he admitted with a heavy sigh. Walking over to his throne, a long seat with red upholstery embroidered with gold along its edges. However, not even two minutes past before Pankraz became tired of sitting down and got back up to pace around once more.

The man who hard called out to Pankraz sighed in defeat at trying to calm him down and went back to where the three soldiers were guarding the door to make idle conversation to pass the time. Things remained the same for another half hour until…

"Sir Pankraz!" a new voice yelled as a pudgy man came barreling down the stairs behind the throne leading to Pankraz's private rooms. The man had small brown eyes that gleamed with gentleness. His equally brown hair neatly curled along his forehead and down more towards his neck, with a thin handlebar mustache with the middle cleanly shaved off. He was dressed in a simple green tunic, with a lighter, orange tunic over that. He wore yellow leather gloves and a pair of thick, heavy brown leather boots. He came running to Pankraz's side with incredibly heavy panting as Pankraz ran over to him as well.

"What is it, Sancho?" Pankraz asked in a hurry, with slight worry carried in his tone, "Is something wrong? Is Mada okay? Is it…?"

"E-Eez a baby, señior!" the man named Sancho breathed out, breaking back into his accent he took with him from his homeland. He had long since lost it after becoming accustomed to the language of Gotha and most of the known world, but every now and then when he became emotional, his control faltered, "A beautiful bebé!"

Thank the Goddess!" Pankraz roared with a smile at Sancho's news as he raced towards and up the stairs.

As Pankraz flew off the stairs and past his dining hall, a wet nurse in her early twenties came racing towards him with a smile on her face, "Congratulations, sire. It's a baby boy!"

"Excellent!" Pankraz nodded to her with a smile beaming on his face as he opened the door to his bedchamber.

In his bed, located in the center of the room, over the sheets, was his wife, Madalena with a nun watching over her saying a prayer. With her long, flowing light brown hair combed away from her sweating brow, and he pale complexion, it was obvious to everyone that the delivery had been taxing on her. However, as soon as Pankraz came into the room, her expression brightened as her dark caramel shined in his direction. Her petite figure was wrapped in her light pink gown embroidered with frills was folded over her legs with noticeable wrinkles after spending so long in labor. Next to her on the bed, closer to Pankraz, was their newborn child. His wailing was loud and full of strength.

"Mada…" Pankraz sighed happily as he moved to Madalena and put his hand over her shoulder, "You were incredible…"

"My dearest…" Madalena whispered as she looked into Pankraz's eyes.

"Listen to him wail," Pankraz went on as he looked off to his newborn son with glittering eyes, "Newly born and already a little warrior! Such character in a child deserves to be named right away!"

"What would you name him, my dearest?" Madalena asked him as she looked over to her son as well.

"Hm…" Pankraz muttered as he began to pace around the bed, occasionally looking to his wife and son. Once he had made several traces around the bed, he came round in front of his son and looked over at him and then to his wife, "How about… Jonas? Noah? Erdrick? … Loto?"

"All fine names, indeed, especially for a warrior," Madalena agreed, her sweat glistened as she nodded her head, "But I too, thought of a name for him, before I went into labor. What about Madason?"

"Madason?" Pankraz said to himself, as if testing the name on his own lips, "Hm… I can't say it has the zing I was looking for… but if you wish him to be named Madason, then Madason his name shall be!" With that declaration, Pankraz took his newborn son, wrapped in his small blue blanket, grabbed his cape, and wrapped him up within it, before hoisting him up towards the ceiling, as if presenting him towards the heavens for the Goddess to see,

"From this day forth, with the Goddess as our witness, Madason shall be your name from this moment forth!"

"My dearest…" Madalena sighed as she viewed the scene that would be the first act of fatherhood Pankraz would have with the little Madason with a gentle gaze. However, she cut herself off once she started coughing into her hand.

"Are you alright, my dear?" Pankraz asked in worry as he set Madason down to lean over and check his wife's forehead for her temperature.

The nun finished her prayer and began to dab at Madalena's forehead with a damp cloth. Eventually, her coughing fit passed, "Yes, my dear. I'm just ever so tired right now. But… I don't think I want to sleep right now. Madason… is just so beautiful… I don't want to look away."

Pankraz smiled at his wife as he unwrapped Madason from his cloak and offered him to Madalena, who took him gingerly into her loving embrace. Madalena smiled as her eyes began to well as he nuzzled her cheek against her son's. His crying didn't stop, but he calmed down slightly after being put into his mother's arms.

"I think I can agree with you," Pankraz smiled as he watched the two from the far side of the bed, "But I think the both of you, together, are paint the most beautiful scene I've ever had the pleasure of beholding. To me, the two of you, are both angels sent from on high."

Madalena laughed slightly at her husband's sudden bout of poetry and finesse, "Did you hit your head on something while you were pacing about the throne room, my dearest? It's much more within your character to not mince words and merely say you are happy."

Pankraz smiled and laughed in spite of himself at his wife's words, "True, my dear. I don't know what's come over me. Maybe I'm just happy about becoming a father? …I certainly hope I wasn't _that_ loud with my pacing…"

"Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't…" Madalena teased in singsong as she stroked the back of Madason's head. In response to his mother's touch, his crying relented even more until his voice merely broke free in small hiccups before falling asleep.

Pankraz took one last view of his wife and child before walking out of his bedroom and headed towards the same flight of stairs he had came running up earlier. Now that the birth was completed and both mother and child were safe, he now had to go make arrangements to announce the news to the entire kingdom.

**Two Days Later: Twelfth Day of the Seventh Month**

Pankraz had been busy taking care of the preparations for the grand festivities to officially welcome Madason as future heir to the throne as well as quelling the people's immense urge to see the new prince. Pankraz had no idea how the people truly loved his family. Even though he had been the first king to ever think of bringing the people within the safety of the castle and surround their homes, it had not come without it's own set of problems.

First of all, with so many people now far closer to each other than before, fighting and theft became much more rampant. Pankraz was forced to enlist more soldiers and create a night watch to make sure the unsavory characters kept their crimes only in their minds. It took months to quell these two problems to a satisfactory level, which Pankraz unfortunately had to leave Madalena alone to her own devices and the care of the midwives and nurses during her pregnancy. Truly, he had been blessed with a wife that was too good for this world.

Second, with all the citizens within the castle, where no fertile earth was available to till and plant crops, there was an issue with how to produce the needed food to support everyone. They had been able to work around this steep problem thanks to the work of a scholar Pankraz had recruited a few years back to work in his private service. He had suggested that they build a whole new section into the castle where they brought in soil from the surrounding landscape and fill the room with it while building the ceiling purely out of glass. Of course, this brought about the problem of what would happen if the glass were to be broken, but the scholar had a solution for that as well. If the glass was forged with magic, then it could withstand more force than it would under regular circumstances. It was costly, but with the new ceiling, sunlight was allowed to fill the room and feed the crops. To prevent the soil from losing its strength, it was to be replaced every year after winter with fresh soil, while the old soil was to be returned to the earth to be replenished. The third problem with this was how to channel water into the fields. They too, solved this by setting up an irrigation system where the water from a nearby lake towards the Gotha Pass. To prevent flooding, they built a door that locked the water out and could be manually opened and lowered to let in as much or as little water as one wished. This door was put under constant guard in case someone had nefarious intent.

But then the biggest problem of all, however, was that such an undertaking had upset the balance of the aristocracy. Before, several lords had taken sections of the kingdom and governed their sections to an extent without higher authority, only answering to the king during times of conflict and paying taxes at regular intervals. Once Pankraz had used his power and influence as king to browbeat them into agreeing to move everyone into the safety of the castle, many found themselves at risk of loosing their peerage. But, during this period, one noble's son rose as a great supporter of Pankraz and assisted him in making the whole process go as smoothly as it did. That man was named Jeeves and in recognition of his actions, Pankraz made him chancellor of the reformed Kingdom of Gotha. But the true reason why this was such a problem would be revealed later…

"Almost ready, your majesty?" the man from the throne room on the day of Madason's voice asked as Pankraz looked off towards the sun from his balcony, "Today will be grand indeed!"

Pankraz smiled in delight as he shook his head, "Brother, why do you try and make with the pleasantries? You an I both know we were never ones for the "proper order" of things and all that bull."

Pankraz's bother, Albert, sighed as he let his shoulders slack, "Well, I can at least _try_ to be an upstanding uncle for my little nephew before I meet him. I'm sure my little Gertrude will be a fantastic older cousin for him as well once he gets a little bigger!" Albert let out a wide smile as he closed his eyes, imagining a highly dramatized scene of his only daughter playing with his nephew.

"But she's barely three years old herself, Albert," Pankraz laughed, "She can still barely be left alone for barely a moment!"

"Master Pankraz!" Sancho came barreling towards the two as he brought a tiny crown in his hands, "I made it back from the blacksmith's! He worked day and night without rest to make sure to complete it for today.

"Thank you, Sancho. I appreciate you going and fetching it for me. Truth be told, I'm slightly ashamed I didn't go and pick it up personally…" Pankraz took the tiny crown in his hands. It was of a simple design, a simple metal skeleton that weaved together from the base of the where it was to be worn to the top where it jutted out to form arches of gold. The skeleton was covered in several layers of thin wire and then covered completely in finely knitted red cloth. Truth be told, they had a previous model crown to use, but Madason's head had proven to be a little too small for it to fit on him. They had to rush to get one prepared in time. Though Pankraz disliked formalities, he wasn't one to just forgo tradition outright.

"There's no reason for you to feel such a way, master!" Sancho reassured Pankraz, "A king has many a duties! It's only fitting he lean on his servants when he is in the need of help. Besides, I am more than happy to do anything for you. My loyalty to you is eternal."

"Thank you, Sancho," Pankraz thanked his friend and servant. They went back many a year, but that story did not matter in the grand scheme of things to come.

"Ha!" Albert laughed at the scene before him, "Hopefully none of the nuns heard you, Sancho, my boy! I'd hate to see the disappointed sisters dejected faces!"

"Huh?" Sancho grunted as he looked to Albert, "Whatever do you mean by that?"

"Let us not get too far off topic today, gentlemen," another voice greeted them as Madalena walked outside with Madason in toe, conveniently asleep.

"Milady!" Sancho said, "Are you certain you shouldn't be resting? It hasn't been long since the birth! It is still sometime before the ceremony. Please, rest."

"I'm quite fine, Sancho," Madalena assured him as she looked down to her son, "Besides, how can I keep calm and sit around when our first celebration as a family is so near?"

"I wonder whom he's going to take after more," Pankraz voiced aloud with a smile as he walked over and lightly kissed his son's forehead, "Will he take after you and be gentle and cool? Or will he be loud and hot-blooded like me?"

"I think he'll take after us both, in equal measure," Madalena said with a knowing smile. She then looked Pankraz directly in the eyes, "However, I'm sure there will be plenty of evidence that he is my child in more ways than one. He has your face and smile, but my eyes."

"Really?" Pankraz asked, "I've been… unable to witness such a sight. I've been busy."

"Don't become so downtrodden, my dearest," Madalena giggled as she held Madason closer to his father, "I'm sure you'll be blessed with looking into your son's eyes soon enough."

The ceremony was a rousing success, both in greeting Madason to his future kingdom and subjects, and appeasing the people of their curiosity. That night, the festivities went on for hours without an ending in sight. Madalena retired early with Madason before thing became too unruly. So much drink was consumed that all attendees of the festivities that couldn't make it back to their beds ended up retiring for the night right on the floor. During such a joyous time, everyone had let down his or her guard. But as they say, once you let your guard down, there's nothing to shield from what might happen next. On that night, Madalena, Wife of Pankraz, Mother of Madason, Queen of Gotha, was abducted. During the silence of the night, the faint crying of his infant son from far away in his private chambers awakened Pankraz. The worried father quickly hurried to his son's side, only to discover that his wife was gone.

And so, this single event, led to generations of tragedy…

And this is where the Legend of Madason begins.

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**Author's Notes: **Just as an FYI, things like dates and years and the like are my own personal edition to help keep a firmer timeline of events. The regular game is pretty vague about the passage of time, with huge jumps in between the three portions of it. All in all, this game takes place over the course of 26-27 years. We're going to need some firm timeline to keep track of everything.

Feel free to forget about Albert and Jeeves. They'll never be important. =)


	2. Chapter 2: Boarding Pass, Please

**Author's Notes: **Holy updates, Batman! OK, but in all seriousness, this chapter took far too long to be completed compared to what was accomplished with it. Chapters with multiple character introductions, especially when old ones have changed their attire/appearance will ALWAYS give me trouble because I make it a goal to paint a picture for ALL of them.

Hope you all enjoy! =D

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Chapter 2: Boarding Pass, Please

**Year 756: Age of the Dragon and Goddess**

With the rocking of the ship on the ocean waves, a young boy stirred from his slumber and tossed around slightly in his bed pulling the covers off. The boy rose from his bed, rubbing the the sleep from his eyes as he cracked them open. The young boy had long, dark, black hair for his age styled in a ponytail that just ever so slightly went past his neck. His eyes, still partially closed, unwilling to begin the day, are a soft caramel. The boy is dressed in light green tunic a little too large for someone of his age, with a large bit of rope tied around his waist to keep it from becoming undone so he wouldn't trip over the cloth. Over his tunic, is a purple cloak, which had been fashioned to be ever so large enough to cover his body and wrap around his head. This helped shield him from the cold weather of winter as well as kept his unruly hair from getting into his eyes. Over his little feet is a pair of well-used leather boots, which had already turned grey from how much they were used.

"Oh, well look who returned to the land of the living!" a voice boomed near him as the boy looked over to a man sitting in a chair by a nearby table. His dark brown hair, easily mistakable for black, is frizzy and spikey, barely contained in a ponytail and a mustache comparable to the mightiest of facial hair. His face, while carrying a gentle smile at times, was chiseled and sharp, his eyes are a deep brown, and filled with confidence befitting one who had bested many a monster and man alike. His attire was of made of a simple tan plate worn over his left breast, with a matching shoulder guard over his left shoulder and two simple grey wrist straps along his wrists. Strung across his back was a large scimitar sword, a blue cloth tied along its grip. Across his neck was a necklace made out of several large, canine-like teeth. Judging by their size and razor-like appearance, they had not been the prizes obtained by slaying peaceful creatures. Below his waist was a large, blue kilt, with a pair of long, faded green pants and a small red bag is tied to the front of his belt. Another pair of equally well-worn boots covered his feet as well.

The young boy simply yawned in greeting as he looked at the man with a yet still sleeping face. The pillow was almost ushering him to return to his slumber. "Good morning, Daddy…" the boy finally managed to stretch out.

"I take it you had a good dream, Madason?" the man asked as his head titled in expectation.

"It was really weird…" the boy named Madason began to recount, "I was a baby, and I was in a castle, and there was this really pretty lady that was holding me. Then, then, there was cheering and yelling! It was really weird."

The man looked at Madason with a blank expression for but a brief second before breaking out into a grin. "Ha! You? In a castle? I think it would be best for you to go take a walk around the ship and breathe in some of that ocean air to wake yourself up, little one!"

"Okay, Daddy…" Madason obediently agreed as he crawled out of his bed and began to make it. His father had taught him to always leave things the way they were when you arrived, a skill that endeared the two to any inn owners whenever they stayed the night.

After fixing his bed, Madason opened the door to his and his father's private quarters and walked up the nearby staircase and ascended to the ship's deck. The sun shined brightly in his face as Madason raised his hand to shield his eyes from its rays. The ship itself was not a large vessel, only having space for four living quarters. The steering wheel for the vessel was located atop the two rooms that merged together to create a small house-like structure. The room on the west, which Madason had never been in during the several months that he had been on the sea with his father, is constantly watched by a single solider, who was very adamant about reminding the boy that he shouldn't be wandering so much on the ship without supervision. The door on the east, however, is the captain's quarters. Then, near there was another staircase that took one down to the crew's quarters and the hull where any cargo is stored. The fourth room is the one that Madason and his father were using.

Grumbling to himself as he walked along the deck, Madason passed by a sailor who was busy moving some crates for storage that called out to him when he saw Madason approach, "Ahoy, boy! Another early day for ya, huh? Getting' bored talking with the gulls yet?"

Madason muttered some lazy response to him as he continued to walk by. Either the dream or the rocking of the ship on the waves had made him wake up earlier than usual, which made him a little irritable.

Coincidently, a nearby gull that was gliding over one of the air currents casting the ship forward suddenly dived down and rested itself on top of little Madason's head. "UAH!?" Madason yelped in surprise.

"Well wouldn't ya look at that?" the sailor snickered as he tried his best to keep from laughing, "A bird for the little bird brain!"

"Get off of my head…" Madason pouted to the gull, who squawked in disappointment before flying off once again back above the ship and perching itself atop the mast. This had been the umpteenth time a bird had done that to him this month alone.

As Madason began to expertly check the top of his cloak for any droppings, his stomach began to growl in hunger and subsequent disapproval at the lack of nourishment he was currently giving it. "Hungry…" Madason mumbled as he made his way to the eastern staircase leading to the captain's quarters, where he knew the ship's cook was busy making some kind of gruel.

Though Madason never spent any time speaking with the man himself, the many mutterings of the ship's crew about how odd it was for the ship's captain to take passengers as well as how soft the captain was getting lead the little tyke to believe as such.

"Well hello there, laddie!" the Captain greeted Madason as he walked in through the door. The Captain, for all intents and purposes, was exactly like one would expect a captain to appear. His visage is rugged and wrinkly, a small scowl on his face. He wore a white uniform that covered almost all of his body with gold embroidery over his shoulders and down the front of his shirt. He wore a completely white cap on his head with a pair of shiny, well polished, black leather shoes. A beard almost capable of competing with his father's covered the Captain's face, though since the Captain was of an advanced age, it was noticeably white.

"Do you have food, mister?" Madason immediately asked the Captain with a hopeful expression plastered on his face.

The Captain merely looked at the young Madason with a questioning look before breaking out into laughter, "Ha! The sea air does wet one's appetite more than usual! That's because we all know adventure and wonder await us on the open waters!" The Captain then took a bowl that appeared to hold some kind of vegetable stew and handed it to Madason, as well as a spoon. "Take this, laddie," The Captain winked at him, " A boy needs a lot of food to grow big and strong."

'_Whatever gets me food!'_ Madason thought to himself as he greedily grabbed the bowl from the Captain's hands and began to scarf it down as fast as he could.

"As soon as you're done eating, go tell you father that we'll be at port soon, alright?" The Captain asked Madason as fished out a pocket watch from his breast pocket. If he was judging correctly, they were just a little bit behind their scheduled arrival at port. "…Also remember to come up for air when you eat, lad…"

"Moaky!" Madason smiled as he stuck his head out from the bowl of stew, his mouth almost fit to bursting from all of its contents he had somehow managed to stuff in his mouth. It may not be as good as his father's cooking, but it certainly beat going hungry.

After making a right mess of himself after enjoying three helpings of the stew, no doubt making one of the sailors miss out on breakfast if he was so unfortunate enough to have other duties to attend to before eating, Madason made his way back towards the cabin his father and him were sharing. There, Pankraz busy looking at what appeared to be a map of sorts. Why, his father was so enthralled in whatever he was looking at that he didn't notice Madason take up a seat next to him to see what his father was looking at.

"What are you looking at Daddy?" Madason asked as he peered over to the center of the map where what appeared to be a large island with its northern half completely surrounded by mountains while the southern part was blocked off by reefs and dense forests. Though it did appear like there was a small clearing within the heart of the mountains.

"Huh?" Pankraz unconsciously asked as he broke out of his reverie slightly, "Ah, Madason!" Pankraz turned to look at his son, "I didn't see you there. Be sure to speak up boy! How long have you been here?"

"Only a little back, Daddy!" Madason told his father as he repositioned himself into a more comfortable sitting position in his seat, "The Captain of the ship wanted me to tell you that they'd be docking at a port soon!"

This news immediately made Pankraz's face brighten, though ever so slightly. "Excellent!" he smiled, "It won't be too long before we're home once more. You were only a toddler last time we were there. Do you remember anything?"

"Hmmm…" Madason frowned as he knitted his eyebrows together in an attempt to emulate his father. Let's see… If Madason tried especially hard to remember, he could faintly recount the image of a robust man with a humorous mustache and a little girl with bright blonde hair. Aside from those two things though, he couldn't recount anything. "Not really!" Madason told his father after a few minutes.

"To be expected," Pankraz nodded, "I'd be more surprised if you did. Still… It'll be nice to be among old friends after traveling for so long. I've been so selfish taking you everywhere with me, my boy. If this keeps up, you won't have a childhood…"

Madason frowned, though this time out of confusion and concern. "But Daddy, this is fun! We never sleep in the same place twice!"

Pankraz lowered his head as he let out a small laugh before ruffling Madason's head, "My boy… You truly are too good a son for me."

Madason was really confused now. His father rarely told him things like that. Usually it was only when something kind of sad happened that made his father get a lonely look in his eyes. He'd always change the subject or ignore Madason if he ever asked what was wrong with him, so Madason learned to not comment on it when it happened on occasion.

Pankraz let out a long sigh as he picked himself up from his chair and grabbed his map, rolling it up before stuffing it into his bag. "I think I'll go get one last view of the ocean from the ship before we land. Make sure not to get into trouble, okay?"

"Yes, Sir!" Madason nodded as he saluted his father, watching him leave up the stairs before putting his hand down. "…Now what?" Madason asked himself once he realized he didn't know what to do now.

Now, as any child would do after being bored and without proper adult supervision, Madason opted to explore the ship in full. His first visit took him to the cargo hold of the ship. As usual from his past explorations there in attempts to relive his boredom, roughly half of the hold was saved exclusively to contain the endless supply of crates that held Goddess-knows-what within them. The two sailors that were usually stationed there to keep an eye out and keep things in order always welcomed Madason's visits since spending all one's waking moments watching still objects quickly became boring. Usually, the two were playing a card game by the name of "Rummy" which they tried to teach to Madason several times, however, since the young boy couldn't read, he could never keep track of the amount of points someone had or the numbers printed on the cards. Madason never won one of their games obviously enough. What Madason did learn though were some interesting words that the sailors made him swear to never use in front of his father as long as they were still onboard the ship. Madason, being the innocent child that he was, didn't think anything was strange when he promised them and kept his mouth shut around his father for almost all the three months they had been sailing.

After growing bored of watching the two sailors play their game of cards and chance, Madason wandered back up the the deck and began to make his way towards the one room on the port side of the ship that he was never allowed by. A soldier, that is to say, an actual professional soldier, was charged with guarding the door from anyone who entered.

"Mind yourself, boy," the solider warned Madason as he approached, "This is the quarters of Sir Rodrigo Briscoletti. No one but his family and his most trusted of friends are allowed in here. Run along now before you get yourself into trouble, understood?"

"Meanie!" Madason pouted at the soldier as he blew a raspberry in his direction before running off before the solider could respond.

Laughing manically while not paying attention to where he was running, Madason soon found himself running headfirst into what seemed like a sturdy pole. After falling onto his rump and massaging the spot on his forehead he had hit, he looked up to see his father standing over him, a look of slight annoyance on his face. "What did I tell you about behaving yourself?" Pankraz asked softly, though with a slight hint of anger in his voice, "It isn't good to bother people when they're at work, you know."

"I'm sorry, Daddy…" Madason murmured as he put his head down.

"Now, now…" Pankraz huffed as he picked Madason up into his arms and carried him into his chest, "Don't go getting all mopy-eyed. I'm not really angry at you, but you should know better at this age."

"Yes, Daddy," Madason nodded as he listened dutifully to his father speak.

"Port, ahoy!" a voice range out from the crow's nest.

"Ah, it seems we've arrived," Pankraz looked over ship to see land looming closer, "Time to get ready." With a mighty toss, Madason found himself flying into the air before falling back down into his father's strong arms before being set back down on the deck. "Come," he told his son, "We should make sure all of our belongings are secured and put away before we leave…"

* * *

"Papa?" a young girl asked as she tugged at the sleeve of a larger man right next to her. She was a very young girl, barely past the age of six herself. She kept her short, straight blue hair free of any adornments aside from a big pink ribbon she kept tied to the right side of her head, just in front of her ear. Her pretty pink and white dress fluttered in the sea breeze as she looked shyly over to the approaching ship. This was the first time she would be on a ship, at least according to her, though for all she knew, she had been on them many a time before. The calm waves of the ocean reflected perfectly against her crystal blue eyes.

"Yes, my little Nera?" the man addressed as Papa asked her, his smile quelling any anxiety she was experiencing. The man was slightly heavyset. His round form was in an extravagant attire of a white silk shirt underneath a deep green vestment with white trimming underneath a far more fabulous red coat with gold cloth trimming stitched in a triangle pattern that was adorned with a light violet scarf that went well and above his neck and trailed over both sides of his coat three times over. For some odd reason he insisted on wearing purple and white puffed sleeves in a straight-lined pattern. His pants were a deep purple, with a yellow sash tied around his waist in place of a belt. He wore white boots made from the finest of leather with gold trim around the heels, toes, and upper shaft of his boots. In his left hand was a cane made from mahogany with a diamond encrusted in gold encased on its handle. His head, though round, always had a smile of intense happiness. His eyes, a warm brown, held a constant glint of friendliness. Though he was mostly bald, he had two great brown puffs of hair fashioned straight, resembling two mountain tops, with a mustache and goatee to match.

"Are we really going on that ship?" the little girl known as Nera asked her father.

"Of course!" the man laughed jovially, "Little one, once you've taken your first step onto the boat, I assure you you'll never want to get off!"

"I don't see what's so special about some stinky old boat!" another voice angrily huffed on the man's right. Another young girl looked on to the approaching ship with a look of great annoyance and distain as it approached. She was young like Nera, but appeared to be the older one of the two. She was around a whole year older than Nera, making her around seven years of age. She kept her short, like Nera, but wore her dark black locks wavy and wild, like the mane of a lion. Her hair, however, had many more adornments like ribbons and bows in her hair, as if forcing herself to stand out above the crowd. Her pretty red and pink dress reinforced this thought in comparison to her younger sister's dress, which emphasized a quieter feeling to match her personality. Her eyes, a lion brown color displayed an overabundance of ferocity and pride, as if every other person was beneath her and not worth any of her time. It would take those of the utmost lion-hearted demeanor to match her, much less keep her under control.

"Oiy, Debora," the man sighed, "You haven't even been on the ship yet, my little bell pepper. Once you see the suite we'll be staying in, you'll be singing a different tune, yes?"

"We'll see!" the girl known as Debora huffed, "But if I'm right, you have to buy me a pretty necklace! With LOTS of jewels!"

The man sighed to himself yet again.

* * *

"There we go, let it down gently men!" The Captain said as two sailors set down the boarding plank to connect the ship to the harbor. It was a long journey to get here from the eastern continent, and it would be a longer one still until they dropped off Sir Briscoletti and his daughters at their destination at Gotha. The life of a seaman was indeed a harsh one…

"OUT OF MY WAY!" a voice screamed out in command the instant the boarding plank had been set down. The two sailors were shocked speechless and motionless as a red and black blur whizzed on by and made an immediate beeline for the door the soldier had been guarding. Before he could even more out of the way to intercept the blur, it was through the door, leaving a very confused soldier to decide if he should even go in to check what had just entered the room.

"Someone was in a hurry…" Pankraz mused as he kept Madason secured on his shoulders.

"What was that, Daddy?" the young Madason asked in curiosity.

"A very busy and impatient person, my boy," Pankraz informed his son, "Hopefully you won't be knowing anyone like that in your life. They make things hectic."

"Huh?" Madason asked as he looked at his father with an even more confused expression than earlier before.

"Ahh… That girl will be the death of me…" a voice sighed as a great round man walked up the board.

"Sir Briscoletti!" The Captain announced as he stood at attention and saluted the man, "I hope you've had the best of health!"

"Ah, Captain, my good man!" the man known as Briscoletti greeted him as he stepped onto the boat and face him. He gave The Captain a good once-over before happily stating, "Ah, a colorful face and a round belly like yours means a man has been eating well! And when a man has been eating well, his spirits set sail! How has this old linguini been treating you?"

"This ship glides through the water as well as when she first set sail, Sir!" The Captain answered the man.

"Excuse me, sir…" Pankraz softly asked Briscoletti as he stepped forward.

"Oh?" Briscoletti grunted as he turned to face Pankraz, having to look up to meet his eyes since Pankraz was around a head taller than himself, "And how may I help you, my good sir?"

"Your daughter…" Pankraz pointed out as he ushered to the little Nera who was trying to step over the board, but struggling silently. "Here, let me offer you a hand, little lady," Pankraz told her as he gently offered her his hand and pulled her up to the ship.

"T-Thank you, sir…" Nera thanked Pankraz as she quickly ducked behind Briscoletti's form.

"She's pretty, Daddy!" Madason whispered into his father's ear once he caught a glimpse of Nera.

"Oh ho!" Briscoletti laughed as he heard Madason's whisperings, "My little Casanova, you know a pretty girl when you see one! My little Nera here is a peach among plums! Just make sure your face doesn't get so red it looks like a ripe tomato, no?"

"Indeed," Pankraz chuckled along as well, as Madason hid his embarrassment behind Pankraz's head.

"I take it you two are the travelers I heard about?" Briscoletti asked after a moment. He took a small step forward and looked a Pankraz in greater detail, taking in all his features, "You… You wouldn't happen to have some friends in high places, correct?"

"I am but a simple adventurer traveling the world with my son seeking out something, Sir," Pankraz began to answer him, "We've merely hit a dead end and are returning home to regroup and think about our next destination."

"Ah, adventures!" Briscoletti exclaimed, "Certainly not an easy life, not at all! Especially with the monsters getting a little more rambunctious of late. I wish you buona fortuna on your travels and hope you find whatever you are searching for!"

"Thank you for your kind words, Sir," Pankraz thanked him with a bow as Briscoletti stepped over to the side with Nera, allowing the two to descend to the harbor. With those simple steps, the two were finally back in their home territory for the first time in two years.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Now, those two girls and their father? forget about them for now. They won't be important at all.

Until the second act. But until then, oh boy will you want to forget them. Judging by the pace I'm going by this with... I'll be at that point in two years... Geez... And I'm going to have to rewrite their appearances! DX


	3. Chapter 3: Slime Time

**Author's Notes: **And to think, with this chapter, we're only past the first five minutes of the game. I promise we'll get to the point where in the game you'd get to your first dungeon by the next chapter. But that does get me wondering; do you guys want more Father-Son moments, or would you want me to just skip them and get right to the action?

* * *

Chapter 3: Slime Time

As the father and son duo stepped foot on the wooden logs of the port harbor, the sun shined in their faces with the brilliance only ever seen when a man casts his first gaze onto his one true love. Madason clasped his eyes shut and covered them with his hands in reaction to the sudden blinding light, but Pankraz looked onwards, almost directly to where the rays were shining, silently chuckling to his son's reaction. With a quick and graceful pivot, Pankraz turned himself around, turning both his head and Madason's away from the sun, offering it only their backs as looked up to his son,

"There you go. Is this better for you?" Pankraz's chuckled once more as Madason opened his eyes, only to have him begin furiously rubbing them to banish the horrible blurry spots that had begun to attack his vision in a large number.

"The Sun is mean!" Madason told his father with the utter conviction and seriousness that only a child could deliver while complaining about the most mundane of circumstances. Then again, Madason rarely kicked up any kind of fuss to begin with, so him complaining about being temporarily robbed of his vision by the Sun was a comical situation on pure principle.

"Well, since you've got the Sun in your eyes, how about we see the ship sail off into the distance before continuing on, eh? I take it your eyes will be back to normal by then," Pankraz suddenly had the vision of his own childhood run past him as he remembered how his younger brother once had the exact same thing happen to him around Madason's age. Before, Pankraz had merely laughed and pointed at him in a fit of giggling, only to have their mother come by and admonish him before tending to Albert.

"OK!" Madason cheerily replied as he nodded to his father, rubbing against Pankraz's own mane and giving him a dull itch that slowly crept up from the back of his neck to his forehead. It was a slightly perturbing feeling, as if a spider was crawling up his head and wasn't even attempting to be subtle about it.

For a few moments, with nothing but the soft roar of the tides of the ocean and the gulls screeching as they flew overhead, Pankraz and Madason watched the ship they had spent several months on sail off into the distance, eventually escaping their sight entirely as it crossed the horizon. While Madason had been eyeing the ship the entire time, Pankraz had lost interest after a few minutes and had closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of the crisp, refreshing sea breeze at it blew his fatigue from the long journey away to lands unknown.

"Daddy?" Madason asked after some time had passed, as he gently tugged on one of his father's spikes of hair, "Can you let me down now? I can see again and my feet fell asleep…" To prove his point, Madason made an attempt to kick off with his feet against Pankraz's chest, which only served to flail them around in a weak fashion while Pankraz received the full brunt of his little limbs on his pectorals.

"Ouch!" Pankraz yelped in an over-the-top fashion as he rubbed his chest in mock pain, "So young and you already have so much strength in those little legs of yours! When did you ever get the time to train your legs, huh?"

"But, Daddy!" Madason whined once more, though he had a wide smile on his face since he had gotten his father to not only react to his kicks, but praise him as well, "We're ALWAYS walking all over the place! We walk more than merchants!"

Pankraz furrowed his brows in thought as he looked back on all the traveling the two had done in the past six years. True, they did walk around a great deal, more so than even the most energetic of adventures. Pankraz, being a fully grown adult with plenty of traveling experience under his belt before their journey even began, didn't really take notice of their traveling frequency. However, for Madason, a novice at adventuring and traveling, on top of being a young boy, had a hard time keeping up with him. Often they had to either stop so Madason could rest, or Pankraz would have to take him into his arms and carry his son the rest of the way to their destination.

"That is true…" Pankraz conceded as he lifted his son off from his shoulders and set him back down on the harbor, "But we'll be home for at least some time, so you'll be able to relax and play around for a change." Pankraz couldn't help but be overcome by a momentary bout of depression. Here he was, selfishly carting his son around the whole world, searching for his wife and Madason's mother, but his son was none the wiser about any of it. The boy didn't have any friends his own age because of their traveling and he barely had anything resembling a childhood so far. For Pankraz's own selfish desire to find his wife, he was depriving his own son of the best years of his life.

"Really?!" Madason asked his father as his eyes gleamed like expertly crafted gems and a smile stretching from from one cheek to the other. For a brief flash, Pankraz compared his expression to the silver locket that he had commissioned a craftsman to make for him in celebration of his engagement to Madalena almost ten years ago. It had never been finished, as the artist whom Pankraz had wanted to paint a picture of her within the locket had disappeared to parts unknown some time before the locket was completed.

"Really," Pankraz nodded in earnest to his son. He just couldn't help being melancholy for more than a few seconds when Madason smiled like that. However, there was the problem of Madason always having a hard time keeping up with Pankraz that should be given a solution, even if only a temporary one…

In a moment of insight, Pankraz drew his sword from its scabbard and began to carefully and expertly cut off a portion of wood that made up the port, occasionally looking back to Madason, then nodding to himself as he went back to cutting away at the wood. After a few moments, Pankraz picked up a thick wooden plank that went up right around to Madason's chest when he stood it up. "This should do just nicely…" Pankraz murmured to himself as he eyed the wood plank critically, "Just a little time with it later and it should turn out fine indeed…"

"Daddy?" Madason spoke up after looking back and forth between his father and the wooden plank, causing Pankraz to turn around and look towards his son, "What are you doing?"

"Nothing," Pankraz assured his son, "At least for now anyway. Now let's shove off before someone sees what we did…"

"Pankraz?" a voice called out to the two as a man bereft of a shirt with a dark brown tan walked up to them from the sole house near the port. He had short black hair and eyes to match, with a kind of raggedy look to him, as if he was always overworking himself to the point of exhaustion. "It IS you right? You are Pankraz?"

"Drat…!" Pankraz muttered underneath his breath as he nonchalantly hid the wood plank behind his back, obscuring it from the man's view. The last thing he wanted right when they both returned was to answer to why he was damaging private property. "Er… Hello, good man. It's… been a while?"

The man gave Pankraz a smile a wide as the ocean as he clasped a hand over his shoulder, "Ah, it's been years, Pankraz! I hope fortune has favored you since we last met! Oh, everyone at Whealbrook has been eagerly awaiting the day you returned! They'll be ecstatic to see you!"

"Hahaha," Pankraz laughed at the man's mention of Whealbrook, "I may go thirsty, I may end up starving, heck, I may even end up bloodied, but nothing will keep my down! But it is true they were all a somber bunch when I left, though I think you may be overselling my return a bit; besides, I barely spent any time there way back then because I was busy all over the rest of the continent."

"Daddy…?" Madason asked as he looked to the man and back to his father, a curious look on his face.

"Ah, Madason," Pankraz said as he noticed his son's expression, "How about you go exploring for a little while until I'm done talking with this man? Be sure not to go too far off."

"OK, Daddy!" Madason exclaimed happy as he began to fly off towards the outer reaches of the port,

"Don't go too far!" Pankraz yelled out once more as he saw his son off, though he had stretched out the hand that was hiding the wooden plank behind his back, offering the man a full view of the former piece of the man whose very job in question entailed keeping it maintained. Pankraz kept his best poker face up as the man looked pointedly at the plank for a moment.

"Er… Is there a reason you've got a plank of wood in your hand, Pankraz?" the man asked after an awkward moment had passed.

"It was breaking off already," Pankraz quickly told the man as it was the first thought that came to his head, "Yes, just sticking out right in the open, it was. Why, one wrong step and someone would wind up with splinters up their arse!"

"…"

"Hah ha ha… ha?" Pankraz laughed as further effort to make his story more believable as well as to lighten the atmosphere surrounding the two.

"I already repaired that a month ago…" the man sighed as his shoulders sagged greatly, "Looks like I'll have to do it again…"

* * *

It didn't even take up to five minutes for Madason to explore only a part of the port area before deciding he was bored out of his skull. He had attempted playing with the many barrels stacked up around the harbor, but they didn't prove too much in the ways of entertainment. He did however, find several strange green plants, with long, wavy leaves with a light sheen within the barrels once he tried opening them. Being the curious child he was, Madason first tried finding out if they tasted like chocolate, only to find them to taste like Chamomile roots. He soon spat them out with the due haste one would only use when they had a spider in their mouth.

"Barrel weeds taste bad…" Madason concluded with absolute certainty as he wiped at his tongue with both of his hands. As he took a look around, scanning his environment, he discovered that there was nothing more of interest near him. So, deciding that as long as he didn't wander too off into the open road off slightly in the distance, he would be fine since his father would be able to quickly catch up to him. "I want to see if I can find a stick!"

So, ignoring Pankraz's earlier warning about going to far by himself, Madason preceded to both go too far and get into trouble all within the space of a minute once he had left. As he was walking around, observing the local flora of the nearby wood that no doubt served to supply the port whenever it was in need, he attempted to judge which tree would pose the best vantage point for him to view the entire field from. Madason had decided on a fairly large tree a few dozen feet away from the entrance of the port (or was it the exit?) and had begun running towards it when he heard a distinctive "sploosh!" sound, as if he had just stepped into a puddle after it had rained.

Curious about where the strange sound had come from, Madason stopped in his tracks and looked down at his feet to find a blue, almost purple, gelatinous substance, spread all over his shoe. Madason contorted his smile into a face of disgust as his wrinkled his nose, looking for a stick to use to scrape the mysterious substance off of his person, eventually opting to scrape it over the grass when he couldn't find one. However, as soon as he had started doing so, the strange substance began to jiggle and move all on it's own!

"Living jello!" Madason cried out in astonishment as he watched the strange substance gather together and form into a new shape with avid interest. After a few seconds, the strange substance resumed the form of a large teardrop, making itself about as big as Madason's head, though slightly smaller. Then, out of nowhere, two gigantic eyes appeared, blinking at Madason rapidly as part of the substance below the two eyes broke apart to form a large smile. The strange creature, whatever is was, stared at Madason, returning the child's intense gaze with one of its own as it began to bounce in place. "Bouncing jello!" Madason excitedly exclaimed, his eyes shining even more brightly with curiosity.

At the mention of jello, the little creature's eyes narrowed, taking on an appearance highly reminiscent of a person that had become sufficiently angry. Without warning, the little create sunk itself low to the ground then shot itself as Madason, hitting the boy square in the face, sending him falling onto his rump as the creature bounced off and landed back on the ground with a perfect landing. Though hurt by the sudden fall, Madason had been more shocked than anything, rubbing his face in mild discomfort as he looked at the creature and said, "Ow! That's not very nice, you jello-head!" As he made way to pick himself up from the ground, Madason felt his hand clasp something gooey, looking downward to see not just another of the creature like the one in front of him, but two more. The both of them were staring at Madason with blank expressions, though the one he currently had grasped with his hand had moved its eyes around his hand to stare at him. They all seemed to be giving him the exact same look as the creature in front of his had before it had…

"Ouch!" Before Madason could properly react, all three of the creatures had begun to attack him together, throwing themselves at his face, chest, and feet, all in an attempt to exact revenge for being compared to jello, as well as for both stepping on one and almost smashing the other. At first, their constant barrage hadn't really affected him, but after a rough half a minute, Madason began to ache all over, attempting to run away but the small creatures wouldn't relent in their assault. "Daddy, help!" Madason cried out in a fit of panic.

In an attempt to minimize the damage he would take, Madason crouched down to the ground as much as he could and covered his head with his hands. With his feet slightly trembling, he endured more attacks from the creatures as he felt his nose begin to run and tears began to fall down his face. However, after a brief moment, the attacks ceased. Curious about the sudden lack of attacks, Madason peaked out from his hands to see a figure of a man, his sword drawn, as he stared down the three creatures. "Daddy!" Madason gasped.

His face ridged and unmoving, Pankraz noted the three creatures and raised his sword at the one that had begun the attack on Madason. With lightning speed, Pankraz dashed near the creature and sliced it in two with one horizontal slash from his sword. The creature's eyes began two crosses as it fell into two neatly cut pieces. The two remaining creatures flinched in both surprise and fear as Pankraz turned his gaze to meet them. With a dash even more quick than the first, Pankraz appeared before the both of them and dealt with the both of them in one blow, just like with the first. Sighing to himself, Pankraz gave his sword am light swing, sending some blue residue flying into the grass. He sheathed his sword and calmly walked over to his son, who was still trembling, but was now focused on his father with an even more awestruck gaze than before.

"Are you alright?" Pankraz asked his son tenderly as he knelt down to Madason and looked him in the eye.

Tearfully, Madason nodded to his father as he stood himself back up. He rubbed a bump that had formed on his head during the creatures' initial attack and winced slightly, remembering the whole affair sine it was still fresh in his memory.

"Though those were only slimes, you have to be careful," Pankraz began to lecture his son, though there was neither anger nor worry in his tone, "You're still young, and even the weakest of monsters can be a challenge. That's why I told you to not go far." With his piece said, Pankraz chanted a spell and Madason felt the pain and throbbing afflicting his body vanish.

"I feel better now…" Madason murmured as his father took a moment to inspect him for any other injuries, satisfied to find none.

"Good then," Pankraz nodded as he stood himself back up, "Then we'd best get on our way. But first…" Pankraz backtracked over to a nearby tree and grabbed a stick that was resting at it's trunk and picked it up into his hands before walking back over to Madason. "Here," he said as he offered the stick to Madason, "You're very own walking stick. Now walking around with me should be easier."

"Really?!" Madason asked, his mouth agape as he eagerly took the walking stick from his father's hand and began to inspect it. It was a dark brown wood, thinner than the usual walking implement, accounting for Madason's small stature, only going as high as his stomach, with its ends shaved clean to avoid splinters. Madason expertly placed it in his right hand and began to walk with it, firmly placing it into the ground as he took a few experimentive steps with it, finding it to both be sturdy and to his liking. "It works!" he smiled.

"Good then!" Pankraz returned his son's smile in earnest, "Let's make our trip back home quick!" Madason gave an affirmative nod and the two were back to walking the landscape once more.


	4. Chapter 4: Whealbrook and Exploring

**Author's Notes: **And so here it is, the next chapter of Madason's legend! So far it's been more a story about Pankraz, but, as we'll all soon begin to see, Madason will come into his own soon enough. After all, no true hero would last long without a good guardian(s) to watch over them now, would they?

Also Bianca appears.

* * *

Chapter 4: Whealbrook and Exploring

"Daddy, there's a breeze!" Madason cheerfully cried out as he stuck his head up more to better catch the gentle breeze that had begun blowing through the open fields.

There weren't nearly as many roads or signs of civilization here as there were on the other continents Madason had visited with his father, but without those more commonplace things, these lands seemed far more vivid and mysterious; the perfect place for adventures for a young boy. Every tree could hold untold wonders buried beneath them, cavers could have entrances to old ruins of lost civilizations and towns would be filled with new people to see and observe. But mostly there was the potential for new types of sweets Madason could enjoy eating to his heart's content. He was still a child after all.

"Indeed there is," Pankraz agreed as he felt the gentle winds cool his brow. His mind was also full of thoughts concerning this land they were currently traversing, but unlike his son, they weren't such carefree ones. While on their travels across the known world, Pankraz had happened to come across an item of unimaginable value. He had planned to keep it safely hidden away in his own hideaway to keep from attracting the attention of unscrupulous eyes. He had also come across a little tidbit of information concerning some ancient rings that he wanted to ponder on later. "Judging by our current pace and the direction of the wind, we should arrive in town in a few hours, by midday at the latest. If you get tired and want to take a nap before then, tell me, alright?"

"Okay, Daddy!" Madason nodded as he flashed his father a smile of dazzling of pearly white teeth bright enough to illuminate even the deepest, darkest of caves.

'_Son! Your smile!' _Pankraz pleaded within the safe confines of his own mind as his astral self shielded his eyes from his son's smile, _'Its too dazzling! That is a weapon more powerful than any blade!'_

"Are you okay, Daddy?" Madason asked quizzically as he tilted his head on its side, as he looked back at his father, who was seemingly frozen in place with a wide smile and his eyes closed in enjoyment, his posture also frozen in place since before Madason had smiled.

"Come, Madason!" Pankraz declared as he broke his paralyze through sheer force of will as he puffed out his chest in a show of confidence to his son, "With renewed vigor, let's finish the rest of our journey in half the time!" The power of Madason Magic was truly a force to be reckoned with. Many a woman would be sure to fall for his devilish smile in the far future. Pankraz would have to remember to teach his son how to control and master such power in the coming years lest it bring him unnecessary troubles.

"Yeah!" Madason yelled cheerfully as he pumped both of his arms in the air along with his father, not understanding what had just transpired and not really desiring to know. Ah, the sweet ignorance of youth…

Pankraz was determined to hold true to his word. The duo wasted no time in reaching their destination, the midday sun barely at its zenith as the town came into view. Partway through, Pankraz had grabbed Madason and placed him into his back as the veteran warrior sprinted the rest of the way with such incredible speed that Madason momentarily entertained the idea that his father was in fact a nature spirit. He was so entranced the idea that he didn't notice Pankraz slay several more monsters without stopping, their death cries fading in the wind as they passed by without care.

"Madason, we're here," Pankraz announced to his son as he turned his head towards his son, "We're back home. We're back at Whealbrook."

Madason quickly poked his head out from behind his father's back as he drank in the sight before him. Just a few dozen feet away, several small houses stood out against the small cluster of trees covering the plains, as if they were a bed of bright flowers in an otherwise lifeless desert. Madason's eyes glimmered like precious jewels as he felt the twinge of a memory from long ago scratch at his mind, "Daddy!" he almost shouted as he reached out towards the town with his index finger extended, "I've been there before! I remember!"

"Oh?" Pankraz arched his eyebrow in surprise, "You do? Well, that makes things easier then. I don't have to remind you of all the times you got into trouble while we were there!" Pankraz chuckled as Madason pinched his cheeks lightly in retaliation. While he didn't actually feel any pain from said cheek pinching, Pankraz did at least entertain his son with the notion that he had hurt him as he let out a false grunt of pain mid-laugh before he began to march once again towards the town.

When Pankraz had first arrived in Whealbrook, it was merely an upstart trading outpost that offered basic medical supplies to adventurers and the like as a halfway point to or from Coburg and Roundbeck. Pankraz himself had planned to move on to Roundbeck himself when he had first arrived on the continent, but Madason's young age proved to make it a more perilous journey than he had intended. The young toddler had caught some sort of sea sickness or something of that nature and both he and Sancho were forced to search out a physician for his son. Well, to be more accurate, Pankraz went off searching while Sancho stayed to look after Madason, a service Pankraz made sure did not go by ignored. Eventually, after a month of desperate searching, Pankraz found a retired doctor and brought him to his son, where he was cured after being prescribed an herb that grew within the cave nearby the outpost. After extracting the herb himself, Pankraz handed it over to the doctor who mixed it into a drink that saved the young Madason from further sickness.

Once the doctor had done his job and was sufficiently compensated, Pankraz escorted him back to his home in Coburg before returning to the outpost. Once he was there, Pankraz found himself comparing the little outpost to Gotha before he had become king; there was so much untapped potential as a place for people to live, but so little had been done to make it realize its true potential. It was then that Pankraz decided upon a new goal; turning this place into one people could call home. Gathering timber, gathering (enlisting) people, forging weapons for town defense, buying or making farming equipment, cultivating fields, finds crop seeds, planting and growing those crops, building homes, finding a priest for the local church… there were many obstacles they had to overcome, but compared to Gotha before this, it may as well have been child's play. Two years later and they had managed to turn a small outpost into a bustling small town where people could live peaceful lives.

But before they could even fully partake in the bounty of their achievement, they had heard of a sighting of a woman matching Madalena's description somewhere in the Eastern Hemisphere. Without a second though, Pankraz prepared to embark on a long journey, fully intending to leave Madason in Sancho's care, but his son's desperate pleas to not be left behind eventually broke Pankraz's will and he took him along. It also took two and a half years to return, armed with nothing more than an empty rumor and heavy shoulders for their troubles.

"Is that… Pankraz?!" a voice from the town asked aloud as Pankraz looked up from his thoughts. He had walked farther than he had thought, being only a dozen feet away from the man, though why he took so long to take notice to them, Pankraz would never know.

The man was dressed in completely in armor. Plate armor two inches thick protected his torso while thin greaves covered his legs and ankles, with a barbute helm obscuring part of his face. The only thing that could be made out was the man's blue eyes. If Pankraz racked his brain, he could vaguely remember that he had come all the way from Coburg to Whealbrook as a way to start on a clean slate. He had apparently been dismissed from the army for some reason, but Pankraz had never asked and the man had been diligent with his job. Then again, life in the army was certainly not suited for every man.

"Hello there, my good man!" Pankraz greeted him as the two approached, a jovial laugh escaped his mouth to lighten the atmosphere before it had a chance to turn more serous like before at the harbor, "It's been a while, has it not?"

"It's been two years!" the solider shook his head in disbelief as he fought the urge to clasp Pankraz's shoulder. That could wait for later. "I can't stand here and just let you through! Everyone must know about your return!"

"I'm sure I can make rounds myse-" Pankraz began to assure the solider that he would handle the whole affair of announcing his return on his own time, but the solider was evidently much more enthusiastic than Pankraz had initially thought.

"EVERYONE! PANKRAZ HAS RETURNED AT LONG LAST!"

The solider was gone before Pankraz could even finish speaking.

What unfolded after that scene was many people barging out of their homes, leaving their businesses abandoned and their jobs unfinished as they all ran to catch up with the man known as their leader that had gone off on a journey for two long years. All marveled at Madason's growth, almost in disbelief about how much time had flown by. Many a promise to visit the local pub and drink the night away were made with Pankraz, who secretly shuddered in anticipation. The last time they had all drank together was when the town had been officially established, and no one had escaped the wrath of the monstrous being known as a hangover the next morning.

After Pankraz had managed to navigate both him and his son through the crowd of people (and one particularly flirty nun that didn't know of something called subtly), they were able to make their way over to the largest house in the entire town. Standing patiently in front of the door, as if guarding it, was a man very familiar to Pankraz; Sancho. Though… he _may_ have gotten a little more… round since two years ago.

"Master Pankraz!" Sancho called out to Pankraz as he approached, tears unashamedly rushing down his face in happiness, "It's been so long! Estoy tan feliz!" Definitely Sancho. Only he could speak in such a strange tongue when under sufficient emotional strain.

"Sancho!" Pankraz laughed heartedly as he clasped both of Sancho's shoulders, "Its has been a long time indeed! It looks like you are well… You ARE well, I hope?"

Sancho answered Pankraz's question with a deluge of enthusiastic nods, "Yes! Of course! How could I not be well? But let us not talk of pleasantries out here. Come, Master, let us go inside. The Young Master will catch cold out here." Sancho looked over to Madason who was hiding behind Pankraz's leg as the two spoke, trying to avoid eye contact.

"I suppose it is a tad bit on the chilly side…" Pankraz conceded to his friend as he took a moment to note the slightly frigid air. Even though it was Spring, the weather still felt like it was Winter. It seemed Mother Nature was still on vacation.

Now, while Pankraz's house was the largest one in the entire town, that didn't mean it was a large one. Rather, for all intents and purposes, for three people it was quite small. The ground floor was made of wood and it consisted primarily of the dining area, with its wooden table and chair set up immediately in front of the entrance, with the stove and fireplace fixed on the opposite end of the wall. Behind them, in to the next room off to the left was the pantry, where

The meat, along with vegetables and fruits were stored, with the cutlery hanging off the side of the wall from a rack. Then to the right, in an even smaller room, was Sancho's bedroom, with naught but a bed and a simple dresser to store his belongings. Thought truth be told, Sancho didn't even mind it much, a dresser was still too much for the amount of belongings he needed to keep stashed away since he kept most of his earthly possessions on his person at any given time.

Off to the left were two flights of stairs, one staircase leading down into the basement of the house, though nothing of any real importance was being stored in there at present, it basically just being an empty room that should be cleaned more than it does. Then the flight of stairs leading to the second floor lead to a single, large bedroom, which Pankraz and Madason were to use. There, Pankraz kept a shelf full of books ranging on the many subjects he had managed to find during his journey. There were also some journals, letters and messages stored within as well, but since Madason didn't know how to read yet, Pankraz hadn't stored them in a more protective place yet.

It was nice to come back to a nice, clean, quiet home Pankraz thought. Except… there was one thing out of place…

"Welcome back, Mr. Pankraz!" a little girl beamed from across the dining room table.

The little girl had two long pigtail braids of striking blonde hair held together by two bands. Her wide, electric blue eyes shined in the gentle lighting from a nearby candle as she sat patiently in her seat. On her ears, she wore two small red slime earrings that dangled ever so slightly below her ears. A quick look would reveal that they were merely clip on ones and not actual earrings. The girl wore a simple orange dress with a green cloak two sizes too big for her tied around her neck, with another knot off over her shoulder to keep the rest of the garment from dragging on the ground. She wore a silver bracelet on each of her little arms, each one a little too large on her for her own good, though not to such an extreme as her cloak. Then, on her little feet was a pair of leather shoes with wool socks folded many times so they could fit comfortably over her ankles.

"Oh?" Pankraz asked as he looked at the girl in curiosity, "And who are you, young lady?" The last time he had been here, a little girl had most certainly not been here. Unless Sancho had adopted her or something, no one else should have been in the house.

"That, would happen to be my daughter!" yet another voice claimed as a slightly portly woman came bounding down the stairs and towards the little girl. While she claimed the little girl was her daughter, the two looked nothing alike. The woman had bright auburn hair that was tied into a neat bun, and soothing black eyes. She wore a long, somewhat loose pink dress with a white apron tied firmly around her waist.

"Daughter?" Pankraz repeated the woman's words as the woman stood by the girl, "Ah! Now I remember! You're Duncan's Whitey's wife from Roundbeck, aren't you? How is the old man?"

"He's seen better days," the Duncan's wife sighed aloud, "But he's still hanging on like a stubborn mule." Though there was a certain bite in her tone, there was obvious worry buried within her voice. Something Pankraz was quick to pick up on as he gave Sancho a questioning look.

"Mrs. Whitaker has come from Roundbeck to get medicine for her husband, Master," Sancho explained to Pankraz simply. It really was just one of Duncan's usual colds, but he had been placed out of commission longer than usual, so the family had decided to seek a quick medical cure rather than keep waiting the sickness out.

As the adults began their conversation, the little girl had started to make her way over to Madason, who was desperately trying to keep up with the conversation, but found himself hopelessly lost at the mention of names and other villages. She tapped his shoulder gently to get his attention before declaring, "Grown up talk is boring. Let's go upstairs and play instead, okay?"

"Sure…" Madason shyly nodded as he looked at the girl and then to his father in hopes that he was going to give approval or disapproval, but Pankraz had become animated in his own conversation with Mrs. Whitaker.

"Come on!" the little girl commanded as he began to pull Madason away by the arm of his cloak, a displeased look on his face before he decided to relent and follow the girl dutifully up the stairs and to the second floor.

The little girl directed them to the table near the bookshelf, where she sat Madason down in the seat closest to the stairs before taking the seat closest to the bookshelf herself, "I'm Bianca," she told him with a smile, "Do you remember me?"

For whatever reason, Madason felt as if a cold chill had descended upon him. His father had told him an odd time or two that women liked honest answers. However, there were also times when being honest would bring nothing but calamity down upon a man unlucky or dumb enough to answer so. So, Pankraz had said _"When you feel like answering honestly isn't a good thing, always lie and agree with them, no matter what! When will you know to ever do such a thing? Trust me, my son, you WILL know."_

It was now that Madason knew that this was probably one of those times. So, looking her straight in the eyes, Madason nodded and gave a small smile.

"I wonder…" Bianca muttered as she looked at Madason and frowned, as if analyzing his expression for some hint of falsehood. However, his worry was soon annulled, "I'm eight, which means I'm two years older than you are. I know! Why don't I read you a story? Hang on for one minute…"

Madason looked on at Bianca with a curious expression as she grabbed her seat and carried it over to the bookshelf, grunting from the effort to carry such a large and unwieldy object. With her short arms, she had to put the chair almost on top of the lowest level of the bookshelf in order to reach the highest one, but even then, little Bianca had to stand on the top of her toes before she could reach over and grab the top of the spine of a certain story book. It was a favorite of hers, one where a prince of a forgotten land married a commoner and they both lived out their lives in blissful peace.

"Okay, here we are!" Bianca proudly exclaimed as she brought the book down and slammed it loudly onto the table before running back and grabbing her chair. Carefully, she turned the page to the opening scene and began to read it aloud, "Erm… One…. Hm… up… Oh! Upon! No…"

It seemed Bianca was having a difficult time reading. Then again, Madason couldn't read himself so he didn't have a right to judge. But still, Madason felt his attention waning and they hadn't even gotten past the first sentence.

"Oh, this is too hard!" Bianca fumed as she slammed the book shut before crossing her arms and puffing her cheeks out in annoyance, "How am I supposed to read something this difficult?" Madason would silently note to himself that it was a good idea to never get on Bianca's bad side. The possible fallout from such an occurrence would probably leave only ashes of him behind.

"It's okay!" Madason attempted to cheer her up as he patted her on the shoulder, "You did a good job reading what you did!" Madason flashed Bianca the same smile he had given his father earlier that same day, with such a perfect gleam that even the angry eight-year-old suddenly found herself calming down.

"T-Thanks…" Bianca thanked him as her face light up like a fireplace. His little smile was just so cute she had to suppress the urge to pinch his little cheeks from how cute he was. In an attempt to keep herself under control, Bianca averted her gaze, looking back at the book before an awkward silence enveloped the two. Maybe she should pinch his cheeks, at the very least to feel how soft they were.

But before she could steel herself to such an action, a commanding voice broke the silence from downstairs, "Bianca! It's time we returned to the inn, dear!" Her mother, ever the moment breaker and ruiner of her fun. At least within reason.

"Comin', Mum!" Bianca responded with a jump as she barreled down the stairs, anxious both to keep her mother from becoming displeased and also to keep from making eye contact with Madason yet again lest she pinch him.

Madason watched her run down with an almost sad look in his eye. They hadn't even gotten a chance to play before she had to leave, it wasn't fair. But it sounded like they weren't here to play at all to begin with, so Madason couldn't stop her even if he wanted. With a disappointed sigh, Madason walked down the stairs after her, only to find that Bianca and her mother had already left by the time he had made it down.

Pankraz and Sancho were sitting at the table, with Sancho setting out a plate with a small meal on it, which appeared to be some sort of thin wheat bread wrapped over some meat and vegetables. Steam was coming off of it, so it must have been cooked at some point. Meanwhile, Pankraz fiddled with something in his pack before he noticed his son. "Well, then. There you are. Sancho has some food for you. I'm going to go out for a while, so make sure you behave yourself, alright?"

Madason nodded in affirmation as his sadness from the loss of a playmate gave over to an even greater pain: hunger. He sat down in a seat and Sancho brought the plate over to him as Pankraz walked out of the house and gently closed the door behind him. When Madason took a bite out of the mystery food, is tongue was assaulted by the taste of chicken, olives, spinach and even cheese. Madason usually hated spinach with a passion, but even he could devour such a grotesque vegetable when made like this!

"Ah, you like it!" Sancho observed from the expression Madason had made, his obvious enjoyment of the wrap he had created plain on his face, "That's good! Only good children who eat all their veggies can grow up big and strong like your father, you know."

Madason nodded in agreement, his thoughts focused on eating the dish in front of him. Smears of grease lined his cheeks and his lips as he stuffed as much as possible into his mouth.

"You know…" Sancho went on as he took a seat across from him as his eyes began to glaze over, as if remembering old times long since past, "You are starting to look more like your mother. Mada was such a _kind_ and beautiful woman. She… She would be so happy to see you growing up so fast."

This caught Madason's attention, as he didn't know Sancho knew his mother. But at the same time… FOOD! Sancho laughed as Madason tore into his food once more before he got up to wipe his face, now covered in grease and cheese.

"Sancho?" Madason asked as nicely as he could to the large man, "Can I go play outside?"

"Outside?" Sancho repeated as he arched an eyebrow before walking to the door and opening it, checking the temperature with a finger he raised into the air after wetting it with his mouth. His face scrunched slightly before he closed the door and looked back to Madason, "Well… It's still chilly out even for this time of year… But children should be out playing while they still have the chance. Just don't go getting into trouble, alright, Young Master?"

Madason gave an affirmative nod before he rushed out the door, anxious to get out and stretch his legs without having to worry his father about taking too long. Though he was mindful enough to bring his walking stick with his just in case he got tired and still wanted to keep walking. But Sancho was right about the weather being a little chillier than it should have been for this point in the season. The wind bit into skin, but it was more like a small bug bite than ice clinging to his skin. Madason gripped down on his cloak, almost dragging it down over his eyes, as he shivered slightly. But now wasn't a time for shivering in the cold, it was a time for adventure and fun!

But with such a small town, there wasn't much fun Madason could have, given that most of the adults were also watching him with critical eyes, most likely keeping an eye on his safety as a favor to his father. While Madason may have appreciated it if he were a little older, right now, it served more of an annoyance than as a help. So, with so little to do, Madason ended up trailing the small river that bleed out into the middle of town from a nearby cave. He had received a strict warning from a soldier stationed outside the mouth of the cave that the soldier wouldn't come in after Madason if he got hurt, but Madason paid him no mind as he began to walk in anyway.

Heading through the mouth of the cave, Madason was greeted with the sound of rushing water as the river began to snake down further into the darkness of the cave that Madason couldn't peer into. Moss grew along the damp cave walls and on the floor, blanketing parts of the cave in a living carpet. Madason reached out and grabbed some of a nearby batch of moss, tearing it off and observing it with a curious eye. He was tempted to try tasting it, but he was already full and saw some little bugs crawling around within the moss, so he thought better of it and set it down.

"Adventure!" Madason cheerily exclaimed into the cave, his echo sounding back to him as he smiled proudly.

However, his little shout attracted the attention of some of the cave's inhabitants, as two slimes began to jump out from behind some of the walls and made their way towards him.

"It's the revenge of the jello!" Madason gasped as he remembered the dishonorable defeat he suffered last time. The pain was still fresh in his mind, "This time I'm gonna beat you!" Madason raised his walking stick into the air with both of his hands as he began to race along towards the slimes.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Alright, so now we get a proper cliffhanger. Will Madason be able to defeat slimes this time? Or will he be... slime'd? Is Bianca already a young tsundere in training? How do wraps exist in the Dragon Quest universe? And why did Pankraz go running off somewhere else? All these questions may or may not be answered in a quick and timely fashion! ...Or at all...


	5. Chapter 5: Growing Pains

**Author's Notes: **So its a little bit of a shorter chapter, especially compared to last chapter, but I promise to make it up in the next one. There, we'll finish off the Whealbrook Cave and prepare to head over to Roundbeck! Then the TRUE story begins to unfold!

* * *

Chapter 5: Growing Pains

"RRRRRAAAAAAAAAA!" Madason shouted his battle cry as he swung down his walking stick, no, battle club, down upon one of the slimes. His hit struck home, smacking the slime dead center in the face, its eyes bugging out and shooting out of its sockets. However, it didn't look to be a fatal blow like his father had so easily performed earlier, as the slime fell to the ground and began to lazily swing form side to side in confusion.

As Madason silently patted himself on the back for a job well done, the other slime jumped on him from his flank, landing on his head and crawling into his cloak. A second later, Madason felt a sharp pain accompanied by a loud "GLUMP!" sound. Madason scratched at his head in pain while failing his battle club in the air, running all around before bonking his head against one of the cave walls in his panic. As he fell to the ground, the slime shot out from Madason's cloak and landed next to its comrade. It looked as if it were trying to rouse it with some words of encouragement since Madason was temporarily immobilized. However…

Madason was quick to stand back up despite the throbbing coming from his head. With a large pout, he walked up the the two slimes, his shadow eclipsing both of the creatures at the one he had hit before regained consciousness, "That hurt!" Madason announced to the two with a grumble, "Like Daddy always said: TREAT OTHERS THE WAY YOU WANT TO BE TREATED!"

Winding up, Madason unleashed a mighty swing with his battle club, rocketing the slime that attacked him into the one he had attacked, as they both were sent flying into a nearby sign that read for people to 'Beware falling rocks'. The sign leaned and bent slightly from the force of the collision, but the slimes appeared more damaged than the sign.

_Hey, Buddy?_ One of the slimes seemed to say to the other as its eyes began to swirl around in fatigue, _I think we messed with the wrong meat bag…_

_Same here_, the other one seemed to agree as it repositioned itself in preparation for the next attack.

"HIYA!" Madason cried as he jumped at the slimes, bludgeoning the one he had on the ground, turning the poor creature into a fine purple puddle. And where there was once two, only one remained.

The other slime jumped away as its companion was reduced to mush, silently vowing to remember its friend fondly and give it a proper slime burial after chasing this meat bag child away. Summoning forth all of its power, the slime began to glow faintly, prepared to unleash its great attack…

Only to have Madason punt it over the nearby river where it promptly began to sink like a rock before releasing whatever charge it had then propelling itself back onto land by sucking up a large amount of water before spitting it out, turning itself into a rocket. This slime was a tenacious one, Madason noted. But even so, Madason wasn't at the point in his battling career where he'd start taking things slow and methodically. He was still a child and children rushed into things recklessly.

"LET'S GO!" Madason yelled provocatively at the slime as he ran forward with his battle club raised over his head as he held it with both hands. The slime, enraged, charged forward into Madason's attack, where it smashed into it, freezing it in place as the pain crept over its body.

You're pretty good, the slime seemed to say as it gave Madason a cocky smile before its body slacked, turning into a puddle-like shape. Sighing in relief as he brought up his battle club, now back to being a walking stick, brought his left arm up to his forehead and wiped away some of the battle sweat that he had shed throughout the whole affair.

With a sigh of relief, Madason turned around to begin exploring the cave in greater detail, but before he could, he heard the sound of metal hitting the ground. He turned around curiously, to see that the slime behind him had turned into gold coins. But that wasn't all! A small treasure chest had also appeared! The chest was made of wood, but with a red finish, adorned with edgings. Enraptured by the both of the bright colors, Madason skipped over to the chest before gripping the lid and pulling it up with a hefty heave ho. Inside, Madason found… more Medicinal Herbs. Or to be more accurate, a single Medicinal Herb…

"More barrel salad?" Madason asked himself, almost in self-pity as he grabbed and pulled it out of the chest. Sure, he didn't like the taste, but it was a memento of battle! It would insult not just the slimes he defeated, but his warrior instinct as well! …Is what Madason felt and Pankraz had told him once in a far off memory. It would probably be important one day for all Madason knew.

After stuffing the herb into one of his pockets, Madason made way to pick up the gold coins on the ground, not questioning how the slimes had come across it, as they didn't make a jingling sound earlier when he had sent them flying. In fact, when Madason went to check on the other slime from earlier, he had found that it too, had disappeared and more coins had taken its place. He too, picked up those coins and added them to his money pile. "Money!" Madason beamed as he shook the money around in his hands to make them jingle. The sound of victory, it was. Unbeknownst to him, as Madason was playing with his newfound wealth, the chest that had produced the Medicinal Herb faded away, as if it had never existed before to begin with, though the herb still remained where Madason had stashed it away.

After a sufficient amount of victory jingling, Madason turned around, refreshed and ready to explore more of the cave with new confidence. Peering around, he noted the somewhat narrow path that the cave took further down. Two paths snaked off over to the left of the main path, while the right side of the cave was split off by the river, which widened out considerably compared to its banks outside.

"Eene meeny miny mo…" Madason sang to himself as he looked at the three paths before him. He didn't know which path to take himself, and this old rhyme hadn't failed him in the past when it came to deciding what to eat! It wouldn't fail him now either!

Eventually, his finger fell onto the path closest to the mouth of the cave and with an affirmative nod, Madason began to march on by. The path was thin, though more than wide enough for the young Madason to travel through. If he had to guess, he'd be able to fit two or three more of him through the path if he had a choice. But truth be told, he was more concerned with the curiosity of what could be down this path.

Well, little did Madason know that another chest was awaiting him further down the path in a small room that opened up at the end of it. The chest looked eerily similar to the chest that appeared before him before when he had beaten the slimes, but this one was larger and made from what appeared to be metal. Cautiously, Madason poked the chest with his foot, to see if it was maybe a monster that took the shape of treasure chests like his father had once told him in a scary story before bed that haunted him in his nightmares that night. He got back at his father when Pankraz had to apologize and pay for new sheets for the bed Madason had wet that night.

After deciding that nothing was remiss with the chest, Madason made his way to open it up. While considerably heavier than the previous one, Madason managed to open it. Digging around inside for its contents, he found… another Medicinal Herb. Truly, the Goddess had a terrific sense of humor. Or a sadistic one in Madason's current opinion. "_MORE_ barrel salad?!" Madason exclaimed as he crossed his arms and pouted, leaning against the chest on his back and sliding down on the ground and he stomped his feet into the ground in anger.

Madason remained there for a few more minutes, taking out his temper on the chest and ground, though the chest proved a terrible recipient for his rage as hitting it did more damage to his hands than to Madason himself. He had to quit and simply shed bitter tears of pain as he massaged his hands in an attempt to rid himself of the pain. He'd be in for a terrible scolding when he asked his father for assistance later on tonight. "Stupid barrel salad…" Madason muttered with a sniff as he picked himself up to continue exploring, his temper gone.

But of course, things were never that simple for the little boy, as his outburst had attracted the attention of even more denizens of the cave. This time, they weren't slimes, but entirely new creatures he had never seen before!

The first creature was small, though still twice as large as a slime. Its body was spherical, greatly resembling a ball, the same shade of green as an unripe banana, with small spikes sticking out all around its body, with two particularly large ones (for its size) sticking out above both of its eyes. Its mouth was agape, with little blunt buck teeth on display, with its mouth slightly curved into a V. Two dainty arms swung from side to side as it bounced on its two equally dainty feet. To the more experienced adventurer, it was known as a Burr Baby.

Then, alongside it were two other monsters of the same species. These monsters burrowed into the ground, occasionally popping out to survey the area before ducking back underground. They appeared to be the same height as the other monster, Madason observed, but with what looked to be half their body hidden underground, they could at least be twice as large. Their bodies were significantly harder than the ones of other monsters in the cave, with their tough, but flexible outer shells constantly under pressure from the ground they live within. The entire topmost part of their bodies were a bright purple, with the lowermost section of their body, along with their two claws, being an almost annoying shade of orange. Two wide, almost comically large eyes were planted across their faces, bright green, reflecting the light and turning into an even brighter shade as it danced on their eyes. Even funnier, above those eyes, almost hovering in the air, were to small eyebrows gently arching up and down, almost making them wink. Then, a large, open blue maw for a mouth, or rather, what would be a mouth if there was anything resembling lips for either of them. These _totally_ gorgeous creatures, were Boring Bugs.

"Um… I think I'm in the wrong cave…" Madason gulped as he took a few steps back out of fear. These creatures were physically more intimidating than the slimes he had faced before. These looked like actual monsters.

The Burr Baby was the first to initiate combat, scrunching up on its feet and propelling itself much like a slime towards him, smacking itself into Madason's chest with surprising force, toppling him to the ground in a heartbeat. "Ow!" Madason grunted as his head slammed into the ground. He quickly swiped at the Burr Baby with his hand, smacking it off of him, with the consequence of not really damaging it in return.

With his attention focused on the Burr Baby, the two Boring Bugs were able to burrow and dig their way to Madason without fear, attacking form beneath his feet, both pairs of their claws clamping onto his arms, pinching them with incredible force. Madason cried out in pain as he began to cry, tears streaming down his face. Unperturbed, the monster continued to attack. The Burr Baby slamming itself into his little chest and stomach as the Boring Bugs kept him rooted in place. Eventually, Madason felt himself beginning to black out, his consciousness petered out as he felt the resistance from his arms fading.

Feeling Madason slump over, the two Boring Bugs released him from their grip, with the Burr Baby squatting down to observe then child. However, before anything else could happen, the sound of loud footsteps could be heard rapidly approaching as the soldier that had warned Madason about the cave earlier ran in. He noticed Madason lying knocked out as soon as he turned the corner, noting the monsters surrounding the body as he unsheathed his broadsword. With expert and practiced swings, he made short work of the monsters, their leaving behind a small amount of gold that he scooped up and put into a small coin purse he pulled out of his pack. Looking down to Madason, he checked the boy's pulse. With the knowledge that the boy was alive, the soldier sighed deeply to himself as he picked up Pankraz's son. He knew full well the wrath he would face if he left the boy there, even if he wasn't Pankraz's son, the soldier still had a job to do after all, even if curious children made things difficult for him. Though he could just stop them, if they never got stronger, he'd just have to save them even more than he did already…

Outside of the cave, the soldier sat Madason down by a nearby tree and began to observe him for any injuries. As he took off Madason's cloak, he flinched at the sudden coins falling off of his head, as well as the several Medicinal Herbs he had been storing there as well. The soldier arched an eyebrow in confusion before looking back at Madason. This child had money on him? And healing supplies? How could he lose to those monsters then? Ah, of course! Medicinal Herbs were well known to be incredibly bitter in taste. No child would eat them voluntarily.

…

The soldier would be sure to put everything back on him after tending to his wounds. While it would be customary for him to take whatever supplies unconscious adventurers had as way of payment, the soldier couldn't take from a child in good conscious. Well, that and that the gold he got from those monsters earlier was payment enough.

Checking for any injuries, the soldier not only found that the Madason's head was slightly burned, most likely the work of a slime, and that his chest had multiple small puncture wounds, probably a Burr Baby, and cut arms, obviously from a couple of Boring Bugs. All in all, he wasn't in horrible condition, but he wasn't in a good condition either. With another deep sigh, the soldier took out another small pouch and withdrew a small vial of Medicinal Water; a compound created from diluted Medicinal Herb to make it last longer, at the consequence of weakening the healing effects. Regardless, it would be enough for the worst of the wounds. Slowly, the soldier applied the liquid to Madason's head and to his arms, with his chest receiving the last of the compound, as it wasn't damaged badly enough for a few good nights of rest to recover from.

After applying however much of the compound he wanted, the soldier redressed Madason and put his gold and healing supplies back on top of his head and tied his cloak around them. Then, the soldier took a seat in the sunlight, away from the tree, took another deep sigh, and chastised himself for being such a good-hearted person.

Around an hour later, Madason groggily opened his eyes, a dull pain coursing through his body. He was outside the cave now, somehow, but he didn't question it after the thorough trouncing he had received from those monsters from earlier. Confused, he began to look around until his eyes landed on the solider, who was calmly snoozing away under the sunlight. Cautiously, Madason crawled his way over and nudged the soldier's shoulder until he woke up.

Ah, you're awake," the soldier yawned as he sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He was enjoying his nap until he was rudely interrupted. "You'd best be thankful I helped you when I did. Those monsters were going to make a right mess of you. Take this as a warning and stop the playing around in there, alright?" The Solider laid back down in the grass as he began to pick his nose with his pinkie.

"Booger face!" Madason called him as he blew a raspberry at the soldier before taking off. His entire body felt so and it was beginning to turn dark out. It was time to head home for the night and get yelled at.

Back at home, Pankraz still wasn't anywhere to be seen, though Sancho was present, attending to the fire so that would would stay alive. Sancho noticed Madason's injuries from how he was walking and made sure to fully inspect his Young Master, preparing a Medicinal Herb salad for him within a few minutes that Madason found hard to choke down, but heled his wounds nonetheless. Afterwards, Sancho dressed Madason for bed and put him to bed for the night. Sancho himself would stay up until Pankraz returned around two hours later, when the night sky was already well upon them.

"Ah, Master!" Sancho whispered as Pankraz walked through the door, "Did you have good fortunes about whatever you were researching?"

Pankraz let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head gravely, "No, my friend. Though I'm not giving up just yet. There are still some things I must research, other methods to try. If those fail, I can simply ask for some favors from some friends in high places. But until then…" Pankraz looked up towards the second floor where Madason was sleeping and looked at Sancho, "Is Madason in bed?"

Sancho nodded affirmatively, "He's been asleep for around two hours now. He had some injuries when he came back. I think he was playing in the cave earlier."

"The cave?!" Pankraz stood on edge, "You don't think he tried to follow me in, did he?" Pankraz was suddenly beginning to worry about the prospects of his son being well behaved if he was going to follow his father everywhere. There were just some places a boy was to not follow his father to. Such as a brothel, (Pankraz would never visit one, but still) a monster infested cave or forest, and to any kind of establishment that provided alcohol, cheap or otherwise.

Sancho shook his head. "No. He didn't take off after you and you were most likely gone by the time he even stepped outside. I think he just went in there to play."

Pankraz huffed indigently, "There are better places to play than Whealbrook Cave. He must be trying to become a warrior or something… I'd better start watching him more closely…" Pankraz began to nod to himself as he rubbed his chin in thought. The cave had stronger monsters the deeper one went in. Madason could barely handle a simple slime, much less the monsters that lived further down. This would be problematic.

"Allow me, Master," Sancho bowed, "I shall… teach the Young Master the correct way to do things."

Pankraz observed Sancho with not a word for a moment before nodding in earnest. As the two swapped a silent exchange, Pankraz began to walk upstairs to retire for the night. He would have dreams plagued by the sword he could not wield, the goal that was out of his reach, and the inability to find the Legendary Hero. Of all the luck for Pankraz to find the legendary Zenithian Sword, but not its chosen wielder.


	6. Chapter 6: Dungeon Explorer

Chapter 6: Dungeon Explorer

**Author's Notes: **After a long hiatus, Dragon Quest returns! Now, for any of those who've been wondering what happened to be for the majority of the year, please look to the next chapter of Rekka No Ken to explain. I'll also be explaining the new plan for my uploads for the coming year. And what I promise there, I'll do my damndest to adhere to!

* * *

It was well past morning by the time Madason had woken up after all the excitement from his first foray into the cave ended in wipe out. The monsters he had encountered were more powerful than he had anticipated, which wasn't saying much because he didn't expect monsters to be so close to town to begin with. But regardless, Madason was now determined to conquer those monsters and prove himself to be their equal. It wasn't as if he was out for their blood or some other dark reason, it was nothing more than childish vengeance and a innate sense of honor that refused to let him accept defeat lying down; a trait he inherited from his father.

"Good morning, Young Master!" Sancho greeted the child as Madason walked down the stairs, sill wiping out the Sandman's sand from his eyes.

"Morning…" Madason groggily responded before plopping himself down by the table, taking his seat in silence as he awaited breakfast.

Sancho observed Madason with calm interest as he played with his mustache, as the eggs he frying sizzled in the pan, their succulent smell wafting through the kitchen, offering a delectable prelude to the chorus of deliciousness they would sing once they met the tongue. "Young Master," Sancho began as he placed his attention back on the meal cooking in front of him, "Did you perchance… go wandering into Whealbrook Cave yesterday?"

Madason woke up at the question, jumping in his seat as he looked at Sancho with fearful eyes as his lip trembled slightly at the thought of being punished, "I…I…" Madason began as he stuttered.

"Gracious me, Young Master! I won't be mad at you!" Sancho nearly dropped the frying pan at the first sign of Madason becoming panicked. The last thing he wanted to do was make the young boy cry because of his adventurous spirit awakening. "Rather, I want to help you! You'll learn so much more if you have a teacher, after all."

"…Do you mean it?" Madason asked in disbelief after a moment of silence. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Usually, his father never let him do anything remotely dangerous as long as he was around to look after Madason. A chance like this to actually adventure with approval was as rare as successfully killing a Metal Slime! A chance like this didn't present itself everyday!

"Cross my heart and hope to die," Sancho promised him as he made a cross over his heart with his free hand. The eggs were beginning to sizzle now; they were almost done. "I was thinking we could go back there as soon as we finish breakfast. What do you say to that?"

"I say we should eat already!" Madason proclaimed with a bright smile as he bounced in his seat. With Sancho helping him, he'd show those monsters what he was really made of! Of course though, Madason would be expected to follow all of Sancho's instructions lest Sancho take the child back home kicking and screaming. Madason didn't want that one bit.

"He he…" Sancho chuckled as he flipped the eggs one last time before scraping them off with his spatula and transferring them into two nearby plates, "In that case, you'd better finish every last bite, Young Master! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially to growing young warriors like you!" Sancho placed a plate right in front of the boy before setting a fork down beside it.

"The breakfast of champions!" Madason declared as he took a forkful of egg and hoisted it into the air before proudly stuffing it all into his mouth in one smooth motion. The eggs were as warm as the midday sun and a texture so smooth they rivaled the most tender of meats. There was a blend of salt and pepper mixed in with the eggs that added a small kaboom of flavor that only made them more delectable.

"It looks like my eggs are a hit," Sancho mused to himself as he watched Madason eat his eggs with a smile plastered over his face. Hopefully that smile would remain after going through Sancho's training regime.

* * *

"Ah, Sancho!" the weapons and armor merchant grunted in greeting as Sancho and Madason approached the sales counter of the shop.

The shop owner was a giant of a man, dwarfing Sancho by a good head and a half's worth of height. He was built like an ox, with balls of muscles tightly packed together and hidden underneath a thin layer of skin and bulging veins. A leather helmet with a pair of boar tusks protruding from the side adorned his head, with only small punctures where both his eyes would be and several more for air go get through. He was one of the only men in the entire world idiotic or brave enough to even fathom the idea of arguing with Pankraz, much less fighting him,

"What brings your home-body self over to my little shop?"

Sancho chose ignore the man's comment without making a fuss out of it. The man himself didn't mean any harm by it after all, he just didn't have a grasp on keeping his thoughts to himself. "WE," Sancho began as he ushered to Madason, "Are here to buy a selection of starting equipment for the Young Master over here. He has recently attained an interest in the ways of the warrior and the Master saw it fit for me to begin instructing him."

"I'd like a bigger stick, please!" Madason greeted the man with a smile as he grabbed the top of the counter with his small hands and hoisted himself up to peak his head over it.

The weapon and armor merchant looked at Sancho and then to Madason with what would have probably been a quizzical look if it weren't for his helmet obscuring his face, "…You sure about this, Sancho?"

Sancho affirmed the merchant with a nod, "Most definitely."

"Well… this is a tad awkward…" the merchant muttered as he looked to Madason and then to Sancho once more, "I… don't really have anything the lad could use for a weapon other than some cooking utensils… I've got some little pieces of armor I was working on that may suit him nicely, but they aren't really meant for seeing combat, you know? They're meant for light travel for the medicine mixer that lives with his innkeeper son, but he never came to pick it up."

Sancho sighed in disappointment. He knew the chances of there being any sort of weapon available for the young Madason to wield would be microscopic at best, nonexistent at worst, but even then, he was slightly disheartened. "The armor then," Sancho began as he ignored the lack of weapons for Madason. "When exactly was the mixer supposed to come pick it up?"

The merchant scratched the side of his helmet as he mumbled to himself for a moment before responding. "I think he was supposed to come by around a day and a half ago… but my memory isn't the best on when exactly he said he'd stop by… the order was placed over three months ago, after all…"

"Well if he hasn't come to pick it up, that is his problem then," Sancho announced with resolution as he brought out a small gold bag from his side. "How much did the armor cost again?"

The weapon merchant laughed as Sancho began to count out some pieces of gold in his hand, "Relax, Sancho! It wasn't anything unique or nothing! It was just some cruddy set of leather armor he wanted me to refurbish. Usually, I'd charge twenty-five gold for it, but since it's for you and Pankraz's kid, I'll drop it down to ten gold. What do ya say, mate?"

"Sancho…?" Madason asked as he looked back up towards his father's servant, practically lost on where the conversation had gone. Was he getting a shiny new weapon?

"Young Master, I do believe you are lucky enough to walk away from here with a new suit or armor!" Sancho declared as he took out a fistful of gold coins and dropped them off onto the counter. He silently prayed to himself that this was a wise purchase.

"Really?! YAY~~!" Madason cheered without really even knowing what was happening. Goddess bless his excitable nature and easy-to-please attitude.

After the merchant counted up all the gold Sancho has offered up to make sure it was the correct amount, he departed back into his shop (which was also his house) and returned several minutes later with the gold deposited in a safe and a small leather breastplate, slightly worn on its straps and around the edges. With a little fidgeting on Madason's part and refitting it to suite his tiny torso, Madason was raring to go in his smart, new(ish) suit of armor.

"My tummy feels itchy…" Madason complained slightly as he shuffled around scratching his stomach all over as the leather armor rubbed up against his bare skin from underneath his clothes.

Once they were done shopping for armor, Sancho led the young Madason on a quick trip to purchase some medicinal herbs from the item shop before journeying back to Whealbrook Cave. Sancho was preparing his heart, putting his sentimental feelings for Madason's well-being and growth aside in order to properly train the boy enough so that he could begin to properly stand on his own as a warrior and son of Pankraz.

"Now, Young Master…" Sancho began after taking several deep breaths as the two-some entered the mouth of the cave, the sounds of the rushing river drowning out his words slightly, "While I am teaching you our relationship as Young Master and Servant is nonexistent. I shall teach you as if you were a stranger. I may be harsh at times. Can I have you promise to endure whatever comes your way?"

Madason looked up at Sancho in wonder, a tiny finger set on his lower lip as he hummed to himself, "…"

"Young Master?" Sancho asked the boy once more after a moment of silence.

"Will I be strong enough to help Daddy afterwards?" Madason broke the silence with his question.

Sancho himself was shocked to silence at Madason's question. For such a serious question to escape Madason's lips at such a young age… It almost brought a tear to Sancho's eye at the very thought, "That depends on you, Young Master."

The strength capable of aiding his father… Madason didn't know if such strength even existed, or even if it was possible for him, especially at such a young age. However, if there was even the smallest of chances that he could attain even a fraction of what was needed from Sancho's training and teaching, then he'd endure whatever pain was to come his way.

"I won't cry," Madason answered Sancho after balling his fists before taking out the walking stick Pankraz had crafted for him, "I'll let you see how big I am!"

Sancho smiled to himself as he closed his eyes, swearing to himself that he could plainly see both Pankraz and even Mada's silhouettes behind Madason's back. "Alright…" Sancho spoke up, "Well then, Madason, allow me to open your eyes to the way of the warrior!"

Madason gulped in anticipation as he nodded in agreement.

Sancho took to his knees as he ran his hand over the rocky ground beneath their feet, feeling all around his feet until he grabbed and pulled a palm sized rock from the ground, with dirt falling off it in clumps, "Well then, Madason, lead the way."

"Huh?" Madason asked in surprise, fulling expecting Sancho to teach him by example or making him do something, "But what about…?"

Whack!

"?!" Madason rubbed the spot on his forehead where Sancho had struck him with the rock he had just picked up, a small bump already forming.

"First rule: Don't question your teacher unless they give permission to you to ask them," Sancho nodded to him as he showed Madason the rock in his hand, "Every time you ask, I shall strike you with this rock."

Madason's face scrunched up into a frown as Sancho finished speaking, almost ready to say something, but he relented at the last moment, "… Yes, sir…"

After taking another moment to compose himself, Madason began to lead the two deeper into the cave, happily waving his walking stick in front of him as he hummed a happy tune to himself, even taking a moment to take a long drink from the river and swinging his stick through it to create a mist rain to cool his forehead off, as it still stung from where he had been struck.

"…Madason…" Sancho sighed as looked down to the boy, "Can you come here for a moment?"

Obediently, Madason turned around and got back up as he trotted over to Sancho, "What is it, San-"

Whack!

"?!" Once again Madason rubbed the spot on his forehead Sancho had struck, this time with tears welling in his eyes as he looked up to his teacher with his mouth agape, as if he had just been betrayed.

"Second rule: Don't make so much noise when in a monster-infested area," Sancho nodded once more as he held up his hand with the rock in it, "The more noise you make, the more enemies you shall encounter. If you don't know how large an area is, spending time and energy fighting more enemies than necessary can be your downfall."

"O-Okay…" Madason struggled to say as he felt some tears fall down his cheek, quickly brushing them off before turning around and sniffling a few times before looking straight back on path.

As if on cue, two slimes fell down from a nearby ledge in front of the two, the slimes' eyes meeting with Madason's and Sancho's. The two slimes scrunched up in anticipation, waiting for the two humans to make the first move.

Madason looked up to Sancho quizzically as he held his walking stick with both of his hands, "What do we do, Sancho?"

"I will do nothing," Sancho responded as he sized up the two slimes with a lazy eye, "You, Madason, will be fighting them. However, if things prove to be too difficult for you, I shall intervene."

One of Madason's eyebrows shot up as he heard his guardian nonchalantly remove himself from the situation. Well, Madason HAD defeated several slimes previously, so it wasn't like Madason couldn't hold his own… "OK…?"

Looking back to the slimes, Madason took a deep breath before he shouted his battle cry, "Prepare to be turned into jello!"

With his little feet, Madason charged at both of the slimes, who both bounced to their sides, on either end of the boy. Madason stopped in his tracks as he looked to both of the slimes one after the other, unsure as to which one to attack first. In his hesitation, both the slimes charged at him, ramming into his sides and putting Madason off-balance.

"…" Sancho watched how the fight was going, more concerned than anything because of young Madason's demeanor and approach to battle. Then again, he WAS only a six-year-old child at most, so him not being in synch with his battle instincts was to be expected… But at the same time, it is also better to nip the problem in the bud before it bloomed into a bad habit.

Madason got back into position, no pain running through his body thanks to the armor he was wearing, but in the heat of battle, he had forgotten that little foray to the weapon and armor shop. "That didn't hurt at all!" Madason declared bravely.

"…" Sancho looked on in silence as Madason took victory against the two slimes, their remains now transformed into gold coins, which the child picked up and ran over to show him with a proud grin.

"Look, Sancho," Madason jumped in joy, "Money! Take it, take it!"

"Hm? Why?" Sancho asked as he took the money into his hand anyway. Madason likely didn't have a place to store it himself and since Sancho had a money pouch on his person, he would be the one best suited to carrying it all…

"To pay you back!" Madason answered as he pointed at his cloak, his leather armor hidden underneath, "Daddy doesn't like accepting gifts unless he's worked for it!"

Sancho grinned to himself. That was most certainly true, Master Pankraz never was one for hand outs. "Right you are…" Sancho agreed.

Whack!

"HUH?!" Madason gasped as he rubbed the spot on his forehead where Sancho had struck him again, a big red spot now plainly visible on the boy's forehead, tears welling in his eyes.

"You don't know what you did wrong," Sancho began as he paced around the young boy, his hands held behind his back, "Your first mistake was rushing into battle while being outnumbered. The second mistake was dividing your attention between multiple enemies… While your third was making your actions obvious by yelling and posturing so much." With each mistake he pointed out, Sancho lightly tapped the stone in his hand back onto Madason's forehead.

"So, this all plays into the third rule: Fight intelligently. That means waiting for the enemy to come to you, keeping calm, holding yourself steady, and using any and all terrain and tactics to your advantage. Now, since you're young, these can be learned and invented in time, but for now, I am merely informing you so you can keep these points in mind."

Madason did nothing more than look up at Sancho with his cheeks puffed out and tears running down his face as some snot dribbled down his nostril, "S-Sancho is mean…!" Truth be told, Madason didn't really understand what Sancho was telling him, being so young and all. Though, to be fair, Sancho also knew this fact as well.

He was beginning to cry, even though he had agreed to Sancho being strict. With another sigh, Sancho lifted up his hand with the rock in it.

Whack!

"I believe I told you that I would be strict. You can't throw a tantrum now. Especially in monster-infested territory. Didn't you promise me?"

Madason looked up once more at the large man with a complex expression; anger, pain, and annoyance all mixing together. He was now truly regretting and underestimating what Sancho had told him.

"…"

After a few moments of deep and uneven breaths, Madason calmed himself down, wiped his tears and snot onto his sleeve and looked up to Sancho once more, determination back in his gaze, "Please, Sancho, keep teaching me."

Sancho smiled as Madason regained his composure. At the very least, he was much more adept at controlling his emotions than Sancho was at that age. "It takes a lot of effort to not complain; this deserves a reward…"

Madason dropped his strong front as he put a finger back to his lower lip while he watched Sancho bend down and pull out another pouch from his side. From the pouch, Sancho pulled out a familiar green plant, its green leaves crunching in his hand as he folded it to fit easily into his palm.

"There we go, Young Master…" Sancho muttered to himself as he ushered to Madason to approach, applying the herb to the boy's head as a cool and soothing sensation spread from wherever Sancho rubbed it. The pain in Madason's forehead seemed to evaporate in an ocean of lavender once Sancho finished applying the magical plant.

"My ouchie went away!" Madason declared in delight as he rubbed his forehead, the pain completely gone, to his shock. Was barrel salad always so amazing?!

"Rule four," Sancho began with his smirk as he lightly tapped the stone back to Madason's forehead, "Always have supplies on hand. You don't want to be caught in a bad way with nothing on you. That spells disaster."

Madason nodded in surprising reverence as he put his hands on his forehead, as if trying to massage the information into his cranium. "What else, Master Sancho?" he asked with baited breath.

Sancho smiled again despite his best efforts, "Well, Madason, this is where we part ways."

"HUH?!" Madason gasped as he looked to Sancho and then to the ever looming darkness further into the cave. Madason thought he'd be seeing through this entire adventure with Sancho while learning how to be like Pankraz from him.

"Don't be scared," Sancho instructed him once more, this time not striking him with the stone, throwing it back onto the ground and kneeling in front of the boy, "Young Master, you have great potential. However, I cannot give you too much instruction or too much attention because you must also learn to cultivate your own skills. This does not mean I won't ever help you if you get into trouble further in, though. I'm merely giving you the space to try and grow by yourself."

"But what if I run into more scary monsters, Sancho?" Madason asked with a frown as the image of a Boring Bug popped into his mind. Those little beasties hurt!

"If you get into danger, call out my name," Sancho told the young boy. "I'll come running."

Madason stared at Sancho for a moment, shoulders drooped and his frown wide. His brown eyes quivered slightly, tears welling within them. But, after that moment passed, the young boy wiped the tears away and his gazed hardened. He took a deep breath before lifting up his arms and placing them on his sides, "Sancho… I want you to leave me alone."

"W-What?" Sancho struggled to say. It was as if he had turned into a giant white stone beginning to crumble away in a random breeze from out of nowhere. "Y-Young Master… D-Do you know what you just said?"

Madason puffed out his cheeks as he folded his arms over his chest. "I said leave me alone. I wanna try going deeper by myself." Truth be told, Madason didn't want to be hit on the head again. Well, there was also the fact that he wouldn't be able to remember any other lessons Sancho would teach him on top of what he had already been "taught."

Sancho could do nothing but weakly nod to Madason as he turned away and began to slowly walk back towards the cave entrance. Madason could have sworn he saw tears fall from Sancho's face as he walked away, but since his back was towards the child, he couldn't tell for sure. Proud for standing up for himself, Madason puffed up his chest once more and began his trek through the cave anew.

At least, that's what Madason thought. As soon as the little boy turned his head, Sancho sprang into action and jumped behind a nearby rock, out of Madason's view. He'd be a failure of a servant and as a teacher if he knowingly allowed young Madason to go wandering around in a cave by himself. He couldn't help but shake the feeling that young Madason wasn't yet ready to face much more than a Slime or two at one point. With a little luck, he'd be able to step in and take care of any enemies the little boy encountered without him noticing… "I'm sorry, young Master." Sancho whispered to himself. "But I cannot turn a blind eye to your skills just yet. Though it may cheapen the overall accomplishment, making sure you get out alive and unharmed is more important...!"

Going through the rest of the cave, Madason was honestly disappointed. Aside from a random Slime every now and then, no other monsters dared attack him. Even when in plain sight, they didn't pay the young boy any attention. Though, to be fair, Madason accepted the blessing with surprising ease, despite said disappointment. Fewer bruises meant less pain in the long run.

During his exploration, Madason had come across a stairway leading further down into the cave, cut from the very rock of the cave itself. What a discovery! It didn't look like it went very deep, since Madason could see the light from a torch on the wall of the lower level shining from above the steps. "Here I come, monsters!" Madason declared as he ran down the steps.

…

…

…

…

"What's the point of trying to fight monsters if they don't come out?" Madason asked himself as he glumly trudged through the lower level of the cave. It had been several minutes since he had run down the stair, willpower burning at its peak, and it was meant with nothing but a downpour of disappointment. His father's stick would be nothing more than decoration at this rate!

Madason had one and a half minds to just give up his "great journey" and go back home right then and there. But for some odd reason, against all reason, he continued. It was almost like there was this irritating little scratch of a voice at the end of his mind egging him on. _Keep going! You won't regret it! There's something fun up ahead! _If Madason stopped to think about it, he could swear that the voice belonged to a girl. He was sure there weren't any girls living in his head. They had cooties, after all. Cooties were right up there with bath time, early bedtime, and Sancho hitting him on the head with that rock.

As Madason began to let his mind wander, he failed to register a loud snoring sound as he continued to walk. In fact, Madason barely registered the face of an older man as he stepped on his face and continued to walk on ahead. "Ack!" the older man yelped as Madason took his foot off the man's nose. The man pinched his nose in irritation as some blood dribbled out of his nostrils. It took a few more steps before the young boy came to his senses and turned around,

"Huh?" Madason asked as he looked at the man and blinked. "So grandpa's grow in caves?"

The older man held his mouth in check from responding with a quip as the nerves in his forehead popped. _'Keep it together, Herbil. This is the first person to come by in four days. He's your ticket outta this Hell!' _The man looked over to Madason and motioned him over to him with his hands. "You there, sonny! Mind offering this grandpa here a helping hand?!"

"Really?!" Madason grinned as he ran over to Herbil and squatted down next to him. "What do you need: a back scratch, someone to help you comb your hair? Oh, I know! You need someone to look underneath your bed for monster!"

"No, ya ijit!" Herbil responded on pure reflex. He gasped as he realized his folly and immediately began to backpedal. Thankfully, Madason either didn't hear what he said, or didn't understand it as he just looked to the older man with a questionable look. "Er, what I meant to say was no. I kinda have this huge **weight** on these here shoulders of mine that needs to be taken off, ya see…"

Madason blankly looked Herbil dead in the eye before asking, "What kind of weight? It doesn't look like anything's on your shoulders to me…"

Herbil stared back in response before pointing a finger towards his legs. When Madason followed it, he saw a huge boulder squashing the rest of Herbil's body like a pancake. _'And here I was thinkin' I needed a new pair o' eyes…' _"So, you see my predicament."

"How'd this rock fall on you, Mister?" Madason asked as he looked back to Herbil. The boulder looked about as big as Madason himself. It would be no mean feat to push it off by himself.

"I wondered that meself some time ago," Herbil nodded. "But since I've been here so long, I don't care to know anymore. But would ya be kind enough to push this cursed piece o' rubble off my legs before I end out crapin' out me own intestines, little guy? I'll make it worth your while once we get back topside." Herbil tried to use his best puppy dog eyes to make the boy help him.

With a nod, Madason moved towards the boulder and began to push it with all his might. The boulder didn't budge. Heaving a great sigh, Madason rubbed his hands together before trying a second time, with the same results as before. He frowned at the boulder as he kicked it with his foot, doing nothing more than hurting himself in the process. "Fine then…" he muttered as he stared at the boulder with daggers in his eyes. "My Daddy always said that if you messed with the Buffalo Bill, you got the horns. You're about to get a whole lot of horn from me then!" Bringing his hands up to his mouth, Madason snorted and coughed until he gathered a suitable amount of spit in the back of his throat. With a hearty spit, he drenched one of his hands with his saliva and rubbed both of his palms together, oiling them up. Placing them upon the boulder once more, Madason began to push with all his might,

"Hng! Hrrr! Rrrraaahhh!"

"That's it boy, you can do it!" Herbil cheered as Madason stranded against the might rock. Eventually though, the rock had no choice but to yield to the terrifying might of the six-year-old, and gradually got pushed off Herbil's legs.

"FREEDOM!" Herbil declared with a thunderous roar as he propelled himself back onto his feet. He barely managed to catch himself stumbling, but Herbil appeared no worse for wear. Well, aside from being as tall as Madason now, but the poor man would probably consider diminished height favorable over unending entrapment. "Thank you, mah boy!" Herbil laughed as he hooked Madason's palm into a hearty handshake. "I owe ya one! As soon as I'm done finishing up that little errand for Mrs. Whitaker, I'll be sure to see you're rewarded properly for your actions! Farewell!"

And with that, Herbil took off like a Metal Slime, barreling towards the stairway like the entire cave was collapsing underneath itself. Madason could only stop and stare in marvel of his speed… and how his legs could even function after being reduced to literal pancakes.

There was a familiar rumble from his stomach as that thought ran through Madason's mind. "Now I'm hungry… Will Sancho make me pancakes if I ask him?" Madason asked himself aloud.

"I will make you as many batches of pancakes as you wish, Young Master…!" Sancho quietly promised the boy as he looked on from his hiding place nearby through tears. Sancho couldn't help but cry at little Madason's heroic display. Truly, he was his father's son! "Wait a moment… I used the last of the eggs this morning!"

* * *

**Author's Notes: **For those of you who don't get it, his name is a pun. Because he's an Herbalist.


End file.
